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Quirky movie about a guy who earns a living traveling around the country firing people. He works for an agency who provides services for companies that need to terminate personnel who are no longer necessary, but just can't seem to do it themselves. Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) has a rather "odd" goal in life, to reach a plateau that only seven other persons have ever reached, to earn ten million travel miles with American Airlines! This unique perk affords him a special travel card with 24/7 concierge service, and a chance to meet the airline's chief pilot. Every flight, meal, car rental, or hotel is strategically booked in a manner to maximize miles. A chance meeting with a fellow female frequent traveler leads to a continuing affair that leaves Clooney wanting more, but it doesn't work out. Now, a new employee has come up with a idea of how to do this job by teleconference, thus eliminating lots of personnel and almost all travel. Clooney doesn't want any part of this, and takes the rookie on the road to prove that it won't work. This was a simple movie, but it exposed just how lonely people's lives can be.Read full review
Watched this DVD this last weekend. We all enjoyed it very much. If you are a George Clooney fan (and who isn't), you should enjoy this movie immensly. Mr. Clooney is at the top of his game, and the entire cast is excellent. The movie is very relavent to today's work enviorment of so many people losing their jobs due to corporate downsizing. Mr. Clooney's character is a outsourced hired gun who comes in to fire (let go) white collar workers, who performs his job with a firm, yet, not unfeeling hand. He is completely against his company's possible plan to do his face-to-face job via tele-conferencing, and sets out to prove that this delicate task needs to be handled in person. Mr. Clooney's character LOVES to fly and travel and rack up his frequent-everything points, considering it a badge of honor. Movie was enjoyable, had some laughs, made you think, but, the ending was a little ambiguous, maybe to leave it up to you about the character's future. Would I recommend this movie. Yes I would.Read full review
There is no way that I could pass up the opportunity to review this film. This one superbly traps us up in the underpinnings of real life situational irony that only gives us few clues about who this guy, Jet-set Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) really is. The writing is always witty, drastically depressing (yet satirically hilarious) in places and always manages to deliver up an heir of living with purpose by the book and on the clock. Produced by Ivan & Jason Reitman, Jason gets totally behind this project by directing/co-writing this story along with Sheldon Turner pitching in on the screenplay. This Ryan "guy" initally comes across as way too simple minded for me; the outward facade of a study in timing and efficiency. Everybody knows one of these "guys". It soon becomes evident that our guy is comfortable convincing himself & others of his total belief that he indeed has the perfect life. His only goal in life seems to become 1 of only 7 who hold the elite distinction of having flown 10 million miles with American Airlines. Don't get me wrong about this. My traveling days peeked with 12 take offs & landings in one week on commercial airlines across the U.S. in the late 80s & early 90s. I also had a severely depressing job selling computer software directly to funeral homes. Of course, people are still dying to get into the computer (pun intended)! Clooney reminds me of myself here. He's proud of the fact that he, of all the people in the world, is a "total professional" at firing people. He's proud of his corporate raider downsizing technique. Traveling lightly is not just an art, it's a necessity. Clooney gives us certain glimpses of this guy's soul (what makes him tick) to the tune of "I started out as a diamond, so don't rub coal on me" as opposed to "I'm just a lump of coal but I'm going to be a diamond someday." Jumping in bed with just anyone couldn't really happen with this guy. He totally falls for the gal that's his female counterpart he meets during connections at an airport bar watering hole. Reitman & Turner create this world of words that is hard to duplicate with boring people. The quick witted banter is totally heady & shoots straight from the hip. The counterpart role of Alex Goran (Vera Farmiga) is comfortably romantic & played attractively & honestly. Little do we know whats really around the bend. Fascinating things happen when Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick) come into the picture. The down time, disappointment, & anxiety all build us up to the eventual meltdown/refreeze. Our "guy" Ryan really is a fascinating & caring person, yet somehow doesn't have the family roots to bring him back home much. Only his sister Julie (Melanie Lynskey) getting married (whom he isn't close with) will bring him back home to northern Minnesota. Sometimes he is comically depressing; other times, it's just plain common sense. Just when you think he's headed for the pasture, things head "back east" for him & you somehow feel that same ole' familiar "guy" slipping back into his comfort zone, up in the air. The cast is balanced off with funny people such as the groom Jim Miller (Danny McBride), the boss in Omaha, Craig Gregory (Jason Bateman), depressing people like Bob (JK Simmons) & Samuels (Steve Eastin), and last (but not least) Maynard Finch (Sam Elliot-Ghost Rider 2007). Funny that after 67 years, Elliot is still churning the butter. He & Kate Capshaw really where the hot tamales in The Quick & The Dead 1987.Read full review
I'm a serious film aficianado and have been all of my life. New films and old classic films. I usually enjoy new movies but my favorites tend to be films that I first saw in my formative years. However, last year a film came out that became my newest favorite. Of. Course, in was Jadon Reitman's Up in the Air. It's a brilliantly written script with many wonderful ideas. It's very creatively directed. And it's acted to the hilt by the cast led by George Clooney, Jason Bateman, Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. Ms. Anna has the best role she she delivers a career making performance. I wish I could go on and on but space prohibits. The DVD extras are all great. Don't miss the director's commentary. I highly recommend.
George Clooney (Ocean's Eleven) stars as Ryan Bingham in this critically acclaimed comedy/drama. Ryan is a corporate downsizer who's job takes him from place to place around the country, it is about the life that he lives and the people he meets while he travels. He meets Alex (Vera Farmiga) and they begin a relationship. When he is called back to his home office by his boss and is introduced to a new worker named Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick) who is implementing a new way to do everyone's job over the internet, thus ending his life as he knows it and perhaps putting an end to his goal to earn 10 million frequent flier miles. This movie is great, Clooney is his typical self but with a touch of caring tossed in for good measure. Both Farmiga and Kendrick give great performances as well. Get this movie, it is well worth it.Read full review
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