#87 - Up in the Air (2009)

My girls had their first tennis match of the season last night and even though we got destroyed by a very good team, the girls had, for the most part, a good outing.  (In spite of the 38 degree weather....)  On my lunch break today, I wanted to get out of the building, so I drove around a bit, got some lunch, and found myself at a used bookstore, browsing.  This is actually the inspiration for my movie idea today.

I found a copy of Walter Kirn's Up in the Air for 96 cents (I bought it. Raise your hand if you saw that coming...) and it reminded me of how badly I've wanted to re-watch the movie based on it.  I first saw the film with some of my family and friends at the theatre and we all knew we were seeing something special. 


Time to see if my favorite movie of 2009 holds up another viewing.

Beyond the great acting (George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, and Anna Kendrick all give excellent, Oscar-nominated performances) and the excellent direction, there is a heart to the story that warms and mystifies simultaneously, asking the viewer to believe Clooney's life choices and accept the circumstances surrounding him.  We are entreated to admire and cheer for the relationship between Farmiga and him, and we are astounded that Twilight star Anna Kendrick can make us laugh and cheer and yet, sometimes, sort of despise who she is, what with her life goals and personal philosophies.

Clooney is a loner; he doesn't cultivate relationships.  As he tells us his story very early on, we are not surprised that airport terminals and hotel suites are more comfortable to him than his austerely furnished Omaha apartment.  Who needs beauty and comfort when you only spend 50 days a year there, right? And yet he finds himself in the divergent paths of these two women, and we can love the nuances of their relationships.  And what's more, despite his proposed self-alienation, we believe it all.  Everything is crafted so seamlessly that the movie feels as though its unaware of its own power.  This is not a movie of ersatz contrivances, this is a film of depth and logic (and illogic) and, God forbid, actual human beings in actual human situations.  It's a true masterpiece, and as such, it deserves so rightly only the third of my blog's

Score: 10/10

P.S. Look for another post today that is related to this one, in a way, of a movie I haven't seen yet. That part will surprise some people, no doubt.