Review: Up in the Air.

The story itself is interesting: George Clooney and Anna Kendrick play a duo in the business of firing people for other companies. Consider that, some scandal, a love interest; add in solid performances by J.K. Simmons and Jason Bateman, and you’ve got yourself a commercial hit. Sure, Jason Reitman makes hugely successful movies, but he always manages to make them authentic. There’s always something peculiar about them, something quirky and compelling.

But let’s be honest: George Clooney is not quirky. There is nothing in his dazzling face and sultry tone that could ever come across as flawed or confused. Why? George Clooney is The Man. George Clooney is at least two-thirds of an action-adventure movie. He oozes suspense and intrigue. He was voted People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive”… twice. Fact: George Clooney is the one person both your little sister and grandmother are attracted to.

I couldn’t picture him as Ryan Bingham, a lost soul living out of a suitcase. But I’ve also never had to. I can’t tell you the last time he played someone natural, normal, and – dare I say – vulnerable. Luckily, this is it.

To my surprise, his performance blows my mind. For starters, Ryan’s professional exterior gives way to an interesting core. His layers reveal themselves easily, but sometimes too easily, to the point where you’re left wondering how he let himself get so isolated. He definitely doesn’t seem all that uncomfortable with people, so perhaps he just doesn’t like them much. It’s a tough call.

I was pleased to find that Anna Kendrick is really likable. She doesn’t play the 23-year-old know-it-all she appears to in the film’s trailer. Kendrick’s character, Natalie Keener, has the intellect of an adult, but a benevolence that can only come from someone with her innate youthful candor. Her performance, both a little shocking and even a little cute, marks a good beginning. Natalie is younger than the rest of the cast, but you get the distinct sense that she knows what she’s talking about. You want to put faith in her because she has faith in so much. (Also, she gets bonus points for holding her own in arguments with Ryan.)

Then there’s Alex Goran (played by Vera Farmiga). She seems to be the right woman for Ryan. While she does make for a real twist in an otherwise textbook plot, often she seems too convenient and too much like Ryan. That is, until he hops a plane to her place – hoping to surprise her after they’ve spent the weekend at his sister’s wedding – and discovers that she has kept a crushing secret from him.

In their last conversation, Alex calls Ryan an “escape” from her real life (which he’d thought he was a part of) and a “parentheses.” It delivers a blow that is unbearably harsh and truly hard to take. For that, I really respect Jason Reitman’s exploration of the truth through one-way deception. It makes Ryan’s journey more believable, and ultimately, more interesting.

After all that, the ending is more ambiguous than you’d expect. The thing to remember is this: an ending isn’t sad just because it isn’t happy. When Ryan stands before a big board of arrivals and departures, I don’t believe that he is returning to an empty life of card-key access. While I would scrap his last monologue entirely (too confusing and possibly too cheesy), I like the general feel of the last five minutes. I find myself in his shoes, arms down at my sides, back at the airport. It’s the right ending because it’s the only place to begin again.

About the Author: Jiordan Castle

I don't eat raisins or watch horror flicks, but I do love chocolate and discovering new albums. I was indie before being indie wasn't indie anymore. Currently, I live in Manhattan. And yes, it really is about as cool as it sounds.

Jiordan Castle has written 10 articles for us.