Flight (FILM REVIEW)
Flight
Film Review
by Kam Williams
Hero Pilot Participates in Cover-Up in Special F/X-Driven Legal Thriller
Co-pilot Ken Evans (Brian Geraghty) is
at the helm of SouthJet Flight 227 from Orlando
to Atlanta only
because the plane’s captain, Whip Whitaker (Denzel
Washington), has passed
out after a night of debauchery devoted to drinking booze and snorting coke
while carousing with one of his stewardesses (Nadine Velazquez). But when the commercial
airliner unexpectedly encounters severe turbulence and starts losing altitude,
the concerned rookie immediately rouses the senior officer out of a deep sleep for
assistance.
Despite
a blood alcohol level over twice the legal limit, the veteran aviator assumes
control and quickly ascertains that the plane’s plunge is due to a complete failure
of the hydraulic system. He further surmises that the only hope of pulling out of
the precipitous nosedive depends upon his lowering the landing gear
prematurely, dumping fuel, and flying the aircraft upside-down.
Against
all odds, he executes each step flawlessly, unless you count clipping the top
off a church steeple moments before making an emergency landing in an open field.
96 of the 102 souls aboard survive, and Whip’s astonishing feat is soon the
subject of a national media circus, ala Sully Sullenberger’s real-life Miracle
on the Hudson.
However,
in the course of conducting its routine investigation, the National
Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) subsequently uncovers incriminating evidence
that the pilot had a blood alcohol level of .24 at the time of the accident. And
since a half-dozen people perished in the crash, Captain Whitaker could
conceivably be held criminally liable for their deaths.
Will
the celebrated hero’s image be tarnished by scandal? Not if his defense
attorney (Don Cheadle) and union rep (Bruce Greenwood) have anything to say
about it. The two hatch a plan to suppress the toxicology report and to sober Whip
up by the time of the NTSB hearing.
Directed
by Academy Award-winner Bob Zemeckis (for Forest Gump), Flight is a riveting
thriller marked by spellbinding special effects and a nonpareil performance on
the part of two-time Oscar-winner Denzel Washington (for Glory and Training
Day). After the spectacular, stomach-churning, opening scene plane crash, the
picture shifts in tone to a character-driven portrait of a self-destructive
addict in denial and plagued by demons.
The
capable supporting cast features Kelly Reilly as Whip’s love interest, John
Goodman as his drug dealer, Melissa Leo as a snoopy NTSB bureaucrat, as well as
Don Cheadle and Bruce Greenwood. But make no mistake, this is as much a star
vehicle as Zemeckis’ Cast Away, where Tom Hanks was the only actor on screen
for over an hour.
An instant
screen classic destined to be deemed among the very best of Zemeckis, alongside
Gump, Back to the Future and What Lies Beneath.
Excellent (4 stars)
Rated R for drug and alcohol abuse, nudity, sexuality and an intense
action sequence.
Running time: 139 minutes
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
To see a trailer for Flight,
visit:
1 comment:
I have always been a fan of Denzel’s since “Training Day,” and Don Cheadle has never made a movie I didn’t like. I first saw the previews for this movie on ITunes a few months ago, and thought it looked like an interesting movie. I was talking about seeing this movie with one of my co-workers from DISH. I’m still not sure I want to spend the money to see this in the theater. I think I’m going to wait until this movie is released on DVD. I have a Blockbuster @home account, the shipping is fast and when I’m done I can return this movie to the store for another movie in my queue. It has been a while since Denzel has had a role that matched “Training Day,” but maybe this movie will be the one to top it.
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