Flight
Jeremy
Cooper: Layout Editor
Director:
Robert
Zemeckis
Cast:
Denzel
Washington, Don Cheadle, Kelly Reilly, Bruce Greenwood
Synopsis:
Captain
Whip Whitaker (Washington) is an
airline pilot with severe alcohol and drug addictions. One fateful day, the
plane he is flying suffers a malfunction. He manages to save most of the
passengers onboard in the ensuing crash and is hailed as a hero. However, he
was drunk the night before and on the morning he flew the plane and the
resulting investigation into the crash could put him in prison for life.
Review:
For
the past decade or so, director Robert Zemeckis has made only animated
motion-capture films with middling results. Finally, he returns to live-action
cinema. Zemeckis has always been about spectacle, with blockbusters Back to the Future and Who Framed Roger Rabbit ranking among
his best works. However, his more dramatic material, such as Forrest Gump and Cast Away, while good and
possessing many strong merits, also have many noticeable flaws and the same can
be said about Flight.
There are
moments lacking in subtlety, such as the use of classic rock songs to spell out
situations the characters are going through in a painfully obvious manner. I
found the recurring theme of God and religion to be among the weaker moments in
the movie, including one scene where Whitaker visits his hospitalized co-pilot
which goes from serious and engaging to laughable when the topic is eventually
brought up. Fortunately, there are only a few short scenes featuring the God
theme so it doesn’t affect the film too much.
Another problem I had with the
film was Kelly Reilly’s character, a recovering drug addict who serves as a
romantic interest for Whitaker. While Reilly plays the part well, both of these
character arcs are not wrapped-up in a satisfying manner, especially since she
disappears for the last forty minutes. In the end, her character doesn’t really
add anything other than to reinforce the well-established point that Whitaker
has a problem, and ultimately didn’t need to be in the film.
These afore-mentioned
problems aren't bad, just unnecessary. What
is bad, however, is the ending, where Whitaker pulls a character 180 without
enough buildup to make a satisfying payoff, and it's done just so there can be
a feel-good, redemptive ending. That was really frustrating.
Despite these
flaws, there are a lot of good things in this movie and I did really enjoy it.
The plane crash at the beginning is spectacular and shows that Zemeckis hasn’t
lost his touch as a director. The second-half of the film then becomes a
character-study on addiction. Although this is where most of the problems I’ve
discussed occur, it is, for the most part, restrained, compelling and always
engaging.
Even when Flight hits its
narrative shortcomings, it is held-aloft by Denzel Washington, who gives a
nuanced and tortured performance that conveys so much complex emotion, even in
scenes where he has no dialogue. Whitaker isn’t always likable, but Washington
makes him into a compelling character who you do want to see get better and
feel devastated when he fails to do so. These positives, in addition to a
terrific supporting cast, help the movie rise above its faults and keep the
audience constantly invested in the story.
Consensus:
Despite
its flaws, Flight is a solid outing from Robert Zemeckis and features a typically strong performance from
Denzel Washington.
Verdict:
7
out of 10
