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"A Movie About The Up-Side of Being Down-Sized"
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A 2009 American comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman.
< read all 21 reviewsLife is not a bed of roses
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Jan 18, 2010
- by Sharrie
- posted in Movie Hype
Rating:
It takes the mundane out of the ordinary. Face it, if not it's because of George Clooney, I don't think I'll be tempted to watch this movie, let alone do a review on it! Alright, tempted possibly, because I did spent a great deal of the last decade traveling to as many as 50 countries in the span of a few years which translated to may be 500 cities? So, there is a common thread with the movie in this regard.
+3
However, I did not travel for work, much less to fire people. That made the experience a more enjoyable one. Having said that, I didn't think it's such a great movie though and I'm not in the habit of writing movies reviews. So, what am I doing on this data point?
Up in the Air is really not about up in the air. In these days of downsizing and business failures, a lot of retrenchments are in the pipeline for companies, be it big or small. American companies are known for being ruthless in this regard. It's a matter of survival. Entity first, people later. They will fire & then rehire if necessary. Understandable. Not desirable as far as I'm concerned as I think it's a corporate culture that does not foster loyalty nor productivity. People come and go as times dictate. That's the way it is.
So, the movie goes to portray that. To actually not see Clooney as Clooney is a bit difficult. Hey, the guy may be getting old but he's still a commanding figure. He's a loner in this film and even though he has a 'companion' he has no desire for companionship or love for that matter. It reflects the current culture, I believe so. There are many people in the world with a career that take them all over the world and they live out of suitcases.
To soften the blow of a retrenchment, well, how can anyone? Let alone to do it over the internet? Now, that's a bit too much! Also, the movie took a step further and although it didn't dwell into relationships that much, it however does reflect the way current generation goes about things. So, people ended their relationships with text messages. Done. Over with. And the bed scenes were interesting, I mean the messaging part ;-) (Not massaging, messaging!!!) I couldn't help but laughed at that, it was funny!
So, ultimately, the movie is about coming to terms with life. Love may be sprouting but it has nowhere to grow... what a waste!Now, what is impressive? 10 million miles, hey, I want that!
Entertaining but not enough for me to go to the theater for it. Yep, I was multi-tasking on Lunch while watching this flick ;-)
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QUEENBFLIX
January 31, 2010
You might have liked it better if you hadn't been multi-tasking. I loved it, with or without Clooney--but it was much better with him. Amd give the guy a break, he hadn't even turned 50 yet. SPOILER ALERT---The movie was full of irony, and I loved the way that it refused to take the cheap way out and give the audience the happy romantic comedy ending it wanted like PRETTY WOMAN did. That movie was actually rewritten because audiences didn't like the fact that he went off and left Julia Roberts, so, Bingo. Happy ending.
Sharrie
January 31, 2010
I know what you mean. I'm just being sentimental and I don't like a movie on the depressing topic of retrenchment.
QUEENBFLIX
January 31, 2010
Not that I don't like happy endings now and then. I loved DOWN WITH LOVE which was a parody (and almost a remake) of an old Doris Day/Rock Huson movie with Ewan McGregor and Renee Zellwegger. it was hilarious. I went through 20 out of 25 years waiting for the axe to fall at the post office. I was lucky I got to take early retirement because they are still threatening people.
Sharrie
January 31, 2010
Haven't seen Down With Love. Will check it out . Thanks! Yes, retrenchment, retirement... life.
QUEENBFLIX
January 31, 2010
It's funny, and Ewan McG has a duet with Renee. They sing the title song.
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devora
January 18, 2010
Haha, were you watching this when you were up in the air? :P Your review makes this movie sound intriguing, but I'll heed your advice and check it out on DVD or something :)
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woopak_the_thrill
January 18, 2010
ha-ha! entertaining write up! I'll give this a rent when the dvd drops....I'll watch it because of Farmiga.
Sharrie
January 18, 2010
Oh yeah, you'll get to see her totally naked too!
woopak_the_thrill
January 18, 2010
nikid...I am leaving to see it now...LOL!
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More Up in the Air reviews
I have to admit, I have never been a big fan of George Clooney nor was I incredibly impressed with director Jason Reitman’s “Juno”; but I wanted to see what all the ‘hype’ was about with the film “Up In the Air”. Well, I have to say that after all the ‘feel good’ escapist Hollywood flicks I’ve seen recently, it is very refreshing to see a film that is sincere and direct in the harsh realities of true life. The trailers of … more
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When I first heard of Up in the Air and saw that it was directed by Jason Reitman (the director of Juno) it seemed like an exciting movie to go see. If truth be told... it is. It's got a nice script going for it and some awesome performances. The downside is that, much like Juno it isn't really THAT great. Unlike Juno, however, it doesn't become more obnoxious with each viewing. Juno had a tendency to fall flat in many areas thanks to how it thought it was being clever … more
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review by sniffcode.
December 14, 2009
This was a charmed movie going weekend for me. I saw two five star movies back to back. The first one kept me grounded on The Road and the second took me several thousand feet Up in the Air. In a very strange and peculiar way, they are similar movies. Both are about planet earth as a wasteland. Witth The Road the wasteland is a literal one, but with Up in the Air it's my cynical projection. As should be expected, there are several plane-view shots of uneventful U.S. cities … more
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Compliments (90)
Traveling during the holidays is always an activity that I dread. The long lines, the screaming children, the hungry children, the fighting couples, the obstinate teens. And then once you are on the plane, train and/or automobile you find yourself stuck next to the crying baby sitting in front of a child throwing a temper tantrum who finds it entertaining to repeatedly kick the back of your seat. Yes we have all had the luxury of traveling "in style", giving dirty looks to those with their … more
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review by KonaCat.
April 09, 2010
Ryan Bingham's (George Clooney) job is to fly around the country and fire people for companies who don't want to do it themselves. He likes his work and his life, which is uncomplicated by relationships or domestic demands. On one stop-over, however, Ryan meets a female version of himself (Vera Farmiga) and sparks fly. The success of this movie must be due entirely to the good looks and charm of its leading man, because it is in no other way unusual or special. Clooney … more
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I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed watching Up in the Air. I was a bit worried this would turn into a typical Hollywood movie bashing corporations and celebrating "family values," but it's much more subtle. It's much deeper than I thought (certainly much more so than a typical George Clooney movie). Vera Farmiga and George Clooney add a lot of emotional complexity and are a joy to watch. My only disappointment was with Anna Kendrick - her acting was basically mechanical and forced. … more
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Compliments (39)
every single day someone is fired, for reasons that may be oblivious to them but clear as day to there employers so they fire them but in some occasions these big shot bosses don't have the balls to do there own dirty work so they call in a specialist to sack there employees for them. In Jason Reitman's "Up in the Air" George Clooney plays just that type of man. Clooney's character Ryan Bingham is charming, smart, witty, and very good at his job as you watch the … more
Comments (5)
Compliments (36)
Well done movie that takes a chance with a real, but not happy ending. Clooney makes a character that starts off as being unlikeable into someone the audience truly feels sorry for in the end.
Comment
Compliment
The film is so hell bent on being likeable and charming--and it is, very much so--that there are some things it just isn't willing to say... because it simply can't! It's so charming and touching in many areas that it seems really scared to really dive in others. Up in the Air is a good movie, but a lot of it just comes off as surreal for what it's trying to express and say. It paints some of its themes and messages as being a bit more rosy than they actually are.
Comments (1)
Compliments (3)
Up In The Air is a good movie. George Clooney and Vera Framiga are incredibly pleasant to watch in this film. Jason Bateman was outstanding as the boss. I thought Anna Kendrick was OK as an over educated college graduate. The film is about 15 minutes too long, the second act dragged a bit. But, the bonus features of this DVD are almost worth the price of admission. The deleted scenes are priceless - George Clooney assembles Ikea furniture, cleans out a toilet, and wears a … more
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About the reviewer
Sharrie (Sharrie)
Ranked #14
Ranked #14
I'm a traveler at heart & have been nicknamed Travel Queen by friends & colleagues alike. Traveling has been my life passion for the last decade or so. As we enter a new decade, I'm excited … more
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About this movie
Up in the Air is a 2009 American comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman and co-written by Reitman and Sheldon Turner. It is a film adaptation of the 2001 novel Up in the Air, written by Walter Kirn. The story is about a corporate downsizer and his travels. It follows his isolated life and philosophies along with the people that he meets along the way.
Reitman started adapting the book in 2002, but did not complete the screenplay until 2008. Reitman wrote the parts specifically for George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Danny McBride, Melanie Lynskey, Amy Morton, Sam Elliott and Zach Galifianakis. Filming was primarily in St. Louis, Missouri, which substituted for a number of other cities shown in the film. Several scenes were also filmed in Detroit, Michigan, Omaha, Nebraska, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Miami, Florida.
Reitman has heavily promoted Up in the Air with personal appearances during film festivals and other showings, starting with the Telluride Film Festival on September 5, 2009. The Los Angeles premiere was at the Mann Village Theater on Monday, November 30, 2009. Paramount scheduled a limited North American release on December 4, 2009, broadening the release on December 11, 2009 with wide release on December 23, 2009.
The National Board of Review and the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association have named it the best picture of 2009. It has received eight Broadcast Film Critics Association nominations, six Golden Globe nominations and ...
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Reitman started adapting the book in 2002, but did not complete the screenplay until 2008. Reitman wrote the parts specifically for George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Danny McBride, Melanie Lynskey, Amy Morton, Sam Elliott and Zach Galifianakis. Filming was primarily in St. Louis, Missouri, which substituted for a number of other cities shown in the film. Several scenes were also filmed in Detroit, Michigan, Omaha, Nebraska, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Miami, Florida.
Reitman has heavily promoted Up in the Air with personal appearances during film festivals and other showings, starting with the Telluride Film Festival on September 5, 2009. The Los Angeles premiere was at the Mann Village Theater on Monday, November 30, 2009. Paramount scheduled a limited North American release on December 4, 2009, broadening the release on December 11, 2009 with wide release on December 23, 2009.
The National Board of Review and the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association have named it the best picture of 2009. It has received eight Broadcast Film Critics Association nominations, six Golden Globe nominations and ...
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