Up in the Air Review - TIFF 2009
In Up in the Air, the latest film by Juno helmer Jason Reitman, superstar George Clooney portrays the role of Ryan Bingham. Ryan is a ‘career transition specialist’. To be more blunt: he fires people for a living.
Ryan spends the majority of his life on the road (well, in the air, in this case), traveling across the USA at the request of his boss (played to subtle yet comedic effect by Jason Bateman), who hires him out to large corporate organizations who are too cowardly to fire their staff themselves.
While such a life may sound like a nightmare to you or I, Ryan is in his element. He loves the artificial air, the hotel rooms and the fact that nothing ties him down. Even more than that, though, he loves his frequent flyer miles. See, Ryan doesn’t spend a dollar unless it can help him achieve his miles goal. What is his goal? To hear him tell it: “Let’s just say I have a number in mind, and I haven’t reached it yet”.
Things are coasting along pleasantly for Bingham until he gets a disheartening call from his boss. It’s time to come back to the office. Big news. This, Ryan decides, can only mean bad things.
Upon arriving to the office, Ryan is introduced to the young and ambitious Natalie (played perfectly by Anna Kendrick), who has an idea to revolutionize their business: video conferencing. Natalie is proposing the company ground all of their specialists, and instead of spending all that money on airfare and hotel expenses, fire people over video chat on the internet.
Considering Ryan’s distaste for the concept of a simple home life, he immediately protests the idea. He is then rewarded for his efforts by being tasked with training Natalie on the way of the road, so to speak, and to take her on one last tour.
Jason Reitman, known to most as “the guy that made Juno” returns to the helm in pitch-perfect form in this, his third directorial effort. Reitman has grown in leaps and bounds since he was last behind the camera, and it comes across in the nuanced performances of his cast as well as his steady-handed ability to keep a steady balance between the films comedic and emotional elements. Reitman has reportedly been trying to get Up in the Air off the ground (no pun intended… okay, maybe a little) for five years, and his passion shows.
Despite being a comedy at it’s heart, Up in the Air is a timely tale of the volatile job market, which is likely to speak to the middle-class upon it’s release later this year. George Clooney shines in his best role since his powerful portrayal as Michael Clayton in 2007, giving a subtle but heartfelt performance that only improves as the film heads toward it’s climax.
Up in the Air played to both the Venice and Telluride crowds to unanimous praise earlier this month, and the audiences here in Toronto are eating it up just as much. Clooney has been a superstar for as long as I can remember, but the true star of the film is Jason Reitman, who, with this touching and poignant film, has solidified himself as one of the master storytellers of the new generation of filmmakers.
Expect Oscar buzz, and plenty of it.
