FLIGHT (2012)

Genre: Drama/Thriller
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Cast: Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle, Bruce Greenwood, Kelly Reilly, John Goodman, Melissa Leo, Nadine Velazquez, Garcelle Beauvais, James Badge Dale, Tamara Tunie, Brian Geraghty, Alex Frost, Kwesi Boakye
RunTime: 2 hrs 18 mins
Rating: M18 (Nudity And Drug Use )
Released By: UIP
Official Website: http://www.paramount.com/flight/

Opening Day: 21 February 2013

Synopsis:  Garnering 2 Oscar nominations including Best Actor, Flight is an action-packed mystery thriller starring Washington as Whip Whitaker, a seasoned airline pilot, who miraculously crash lands his plane after a mid-air catastrophe, saving nearly every soul on board. After the crash, Whip is hailed as a hero, but as more is learned, more questions than answers arise as to who or what was really at fault and what really happened on that plane?

Movie Review:

Denzel Washington shines with his portrayal of Whip Whitaker. The two-time Acadamy Award winner charms the audience as he plays every last aspect of his character to perfection. His performace in this film is all-encompassing. The subtleties of his character capture who the man really is; someone riddled with the delusions that come with alcoholism, as well as the over-confidence of an experienced pilot and freshly-crowned disaster hero.

At first glance, Flight seems to have its climax at the beginning of the film when the plane-crash takes place. It seems like a lot for the audience to take in, especially at the set-up. One would expect for the ending to be overshadowed. However, as we progess through the film, it occurs that the plane crash is a mere adrenaline-rush while the actual climax before the resolution is a turbulant rollar-coaster ride of emotions in which we see a powerful example of conflict between man and himself. 

Visually, this movie is a pleasure to watch, although audience members might find themselves getting dizzy with some of the camera movement during the plane crash scene. Still, it meant that the film held a sense of reality and gave the audience a sense of being an actual character in this film.

The soundtrack, which includes music by the Rolling Stones lightens the atmosphere of an otherwise dark film and is an entity in itself that reflects the state of the characters and the plot. The soundtrack once again brings up the fact that Flight is a film of modern times, telling a story that resonates particularly with people of this age.

Robert Zemeckis shows masterful direction in this film with his use of irony and sybmolism. When Whitaker and his lawyer, Hugh Lang (Don Cheadle) have a conversation while overlooking the carnage of the plane, a broken church lies in the background, symbolic for how Washington’s character, essentially a good man, has become damaged due to his drinking habits.

Well-written, the script tells the story and moves the plot forward in a straight, no-nonsense manner. This is with the exception of the ending which progresses too-slowly. The characters however, are all distinctly different from one another and their interactions and thoughtful moments of self-reflection portray the quirks and struggles embedded in their personalities. This though, should be credited as much to the excellent performance given by each and every member of the cast, as it should be to the writers.

The scriptwriters show excellent knowledge of flight terms and about the American legal system, which in turn made the film true-to-life and believable. The dark humor that one will find in this film is a welcome change from the downright-depressing movies about substance abuse.

Flight tells us the true meaning of being a hero, as few films can. Few actors would also have been able to portray the anti-hero as well as Denzel Washington does. Watching Flight, one will feel as if they’re peering into a looking glass to see the downfalls of society staring back at them. A masterpiece of a movie that proves yet again that to lead the life of a hero is a matter of your actions and not who you are as a person.

Movie Rating:  

(Flight is an all-American mystery thriller about substance abuse that doesn’t throw the theme in your face, but infuses it gracefully into a gripping plot that has as much emotional highs and lows as your typical alcoholic)

Review by Nishanthini Ganesan