Up In the Air: Time for a Discussion

O.K. I don't get it.  Just saw Up In the Air because its the great It movie of the moment, right?  Ummm.... Who is going to fill me in and tell me why the movie is special? 

I'll concede that it's moderately entertaining with three interesting characters, well-acted and well-produced.  To me, that equals about a 6 or 7 on the ole 1-10 scale.  To go above a 7, there needs to be some extra level of enjoyment, some layer of surprise or revelation.  Right? 

Who among you found it surprising that our lead character would come to conclude that being alone and orienting his life toward achieving membership rewards is NOT a recipe for fulfillment?  

I'd also say that a truly good movie would stand up to scrutiny when you think back upon it.  How do you reconcile the Clooney's character's confidence in his detachment from normal life, with the "growth" that occurs within the film?   Was the relationship with Alex that special?  Had he never been to a wedding or family gathering before?   Had he never met a smart person who rejected his philosophy before?   One must believe that his first five decades on earth were entirely uneventful for the movie to make any sense.  

I guess I'm being overly harsh.  I thought it was a fine movie, but I just fail to see how it was any greater than that.   Maybe this is like Brokeback Mountain.  It arrived at a time when Hollywood really wanted a movie with gay male protagonists, so a slightly-above-average movie became The Most Important Film of the Year.  And so with Up In the Air, our era of economic anxiety finds its soulmate in a film that has the tragedy of job losses in the background, and a comfortingly familiar moral message (which is to say a yawner of a message), that we should appreciate the people in our lives.   If this wins an Oscar, future generations will be mighty puzzled.

Comments

[Whitney]

Sometimes a movie's brilliance is in its timeliness. I also appreciated the poignant if cliche testimony about what's important in this life, but yes I'm a sap.

[Allison]

I almost saw it last night, but I opted for The Young Victoria instead. I did not regret my decision.

[LarryK]

I haven't seen it yet, so this is speculation, but I would guess several factors help account for the buzz. First, the 'lifestyle' of the main character is centered on airline travel, which has now become widespread and routine enough for a mass audience to relate to. There's also very little treatment of the "new professional" lifestyle in pop culture (although "The Accidental Tourist" is a partial exception), so this is both new and topical. Finally, the star is George Clooney, who is a first rate actor, and I gather the role is kind of a departure for him, and he makes the character believable and sympathetic.

[Allison]

I escaped the snowpocalypse long enough to catch a few movies yesterday including Up in the Air. I don't by the instant classic/this should win all of the awards! hype but I thought it was a solidly good movie that was engaging and well acted. Four stars for me.