Flight (DVD REVIEW)
Flight
DVD
Review by Kam Williams
Denzel
Washington Stars as Pilot in Special F/X-Driven Legal Thriller
Co-pilot Ken Evans (Brian Geraghty)
is at the helm of SouthJet Flight 227 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. Denzel Delivers!
Excellent (4 stars)
Rated R for drug and alcohol abuse, nudity, sexuality and an intense
action sequence.
Running time: 138
minutes
Distributor:
Paramount Home Media Distribution
Blu-ray/DVD Combo
Pack Extras: Feature film in High-definition; Origins of Flight; The Making of
Flight; Anatomy of a Plane Crash; and Q&A highlights.
To see a trailer for
Flight, visit:
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