Up in the Air (2009)

I have heard from several people who have not actually seen this film that it looks like a well-written, well-acted, pretty standard romantic comedy. Before seeing it, I was honestly not sure what to make of this movie, but after leaving the theater, I would have to describe that initial assessment as extremely inaccurate. In Up in the Air, Ryan Bingham (Clooney) spends more than half of his time traveling for his job, and is beginning to realize that no matter how much he enjoys his lifestyle, that perhaps there is something missing. That afore mentioned assessment of the film was inaccurate, but not in the sense that Up in the Air is, in fact, both extremely well-written and well-acted. The story flows very seamlessly, with some excellent cinematic devices that lend a very specific uniqueness to this movie. Additionally, Up in the Air is performed amazingly. George Clooney could have written this role for himself. He is flawless as the quick-witted, world-learned loner who has no intentions of changing. I would not be surprised if he was not only nominated, but won an Oscar for this portrayal. Jason Bateman also does great work in this film as the callous but amusing boss. While the role is moderately comedic, it is a far cry from the normal slap stick humor he usually does, and I found him very convincing. In terms of Up in the Air being a typical romantic comedy, I would say that I do not think this movie falls into that category at all. It does have a lot of funny moments, but it also has some very serious themes, and while romance plays a large role, it is not the crux of the film, which revolves much more around Clooney's inner turmoil than it does a couple. I do not want to give anything away, but the ending is not in any way typical, and is one of the things that makes Up in the Air really impressive. My wife and I saw this film together in the theater, the first one we'd seen since The Hangover, and we both really liked it. There has been a lot of talk about this movie in regards to the Oscars and in particular Best Picture. I do not think this is one of the best movies that I have ever seen, but in terms of this year's field, I have not seen much else, so who knows? This was a really good movie that I would recommend to anyone. I give it a very high 3 and a half stars.