Up in the Air

Up in the Air – 2009

***½ Out of ****

Quintessence and relevance in a film are often a product of world climate, and the ability of the filmmakers to capture that aura. In Up in the Air, director Jason Rietman and lead George Clooney not only create a film glowing with human emotion and wry humour, but encapsulate the disintegration of the world economy in a way both moving and poignant, while avoiding peachiness or a condescending tone.

In addition to its relevance, the film is also whip smart, a great comedy, a touching love story, fully realized character study and much more, all formed into a cohesive whole. This similar mosaic of moods and genres was utilized to some extent in Reitman’s other efforts such as Thank You for Smoking and 2008`s Oscar nom Juno but this is perhaps the most nuanced and mature of the three.

After winner an Oscar for his role in Syrianna, Clooney has become one of Hollywood’s most reliably interesting actors and he tops all his previous work here. The script gives the opportunity for a duel use of Clooney’s talent; calling on his background in romantic comedies and his considerable experience in dramas. Proving to be Clooney’s perfect foil is the unforgivably underrated Vera Farmiga who already showed outstanding chops in both the courtroom thriller Nothing but the Truth and the superb chiller Orphan. This role is the frosting on this two layer cake and is sure to chalk up another accolade for this film come Oscar time.

Giving all the seasoned veterans a run for their money is young Anna Kendrick of Twilight fame and shows enormous promise. Filling out the rest of the outstanding cast is Jason Bateman, who gives possibly his best performance despite limited screen time, J.K. Simmons, Danny McBride and rising star Zach Galifanakis. None of the roles are overwrought or overacted; everyone seems to fully understand the nature of the material and how the humour should be played.

Clooney stars as Ryan Bingham, a charmingly ruthless employee of a firm existing solely to lay off employees of companies in lieu of a cowardly bosses looking to avoid confrontation. Bingham however revels in his position and his life on the road he preaches movement and a lack of human baggage as the only way to live. His one true motivation is to reach ten million frequent flier miles and join an exclusive `club` of only 7 members. His world is breached however with the arrival of a young upstart, Natalie (Kendrick) who believes cost cutting using remote firings by way of video conference is the wave of the future. Frantic with the thought of losing his life of beautiful isolation, he challenges the decision which results in Natalie be sent as his shadow on the road. Along with Ryan’s irregular fling (Farmiga), who meet only when their globetrotting schedules align, they face the effects of the recession and grow as people in the process.

Already garnering significant Oscar buzz, and deservedly so, Up in the Air is poignant and consistently funny with leads as appealing as they are human. If Rietman continues with this streak of winning work it will not be long before he ranks in the elite of modern filmmakers. Up in the Air is not your traditional comedy but it is a film everyone should see, fittingly closing the decade with near perfection.