Movie Review: Up In The Air (2009)

1- George Clooney... I just can't say enough good things about his acting and charisma. 2- Vera Farmiga truly deserves her Acadamy Award Nomination. She's just stands so on the level with Clooney here, delivering a stunning performance with grace, poise and elegance. 3- Anna Kendrick is just amazing. I'm so totally crushing on this smart, funny, amazing actress. Despite her youth, she delivers a outstanding performance against the experience and maturity of her co-stars.

Genre: Drama, Romance, Comedy Rating: 5/5 Watch: Charismatic leads, chemistry, George Clooney (!)

Alex Goran: I am the woman that you don't have to worry about. Ryan Bingham: Sounds like a trap.

Let's put aside the frequent flyer miles. That's to be revisited. This story is really about philosophy and beliefs. How a person may subscribe to one philosophy at one point of time but changes their perspective as time or events or, even, love changes them. Cliched, I know. Ryan Bingham has a powerful philosophy about not being held down with baggage - things, people, commitments. The basis of this argument is that (some) human beings are not meant to live intertwined lives; that (some) humans are meant to be loners unfettered by "baggage". That the baggage slows us down and speeds up our death. Ryan: The slower we move, the faster we die. We are not swans. We're sharks. Thus, the philosophy of the "empty backpack" - travel light with just the essentials for the self. It is a philosophy that reflects a little bit of Buddhism (rejection of materialism and desire) though from a different point of view. Our antagonist has a truly horrific job - outsourced dismissals; his job is to fire employees on behalf of organizations. For Americans, he's a hatchet man. And it is through this lens that we come to appreciate his philosophy - the contrast between the free spirited Ryan versus all the "dismissed" who possess families, things, liabilities, responsibilities and commitments that chain them and occasionally held them back from their dreams. Two things come into his life that challenges his perspective; the powerfully charismatic Alex and the inexperienced but genuine Natalie. Kendrick's Natalie is really an American Business Administration (B.A.) graduate stereotype with the jargon and hard charging attitude. She slams right into Ryan by trying to create changes in their organization that lead to major changes to his life; both his "free spirited frequent flyer" lifestyle and his job security. Changes that may not have been well thought through given the deeply personal nature of dismissals. Vera Farmiga's Alex is truly stunning. Confident, assured, dignified and every bit Ryan's equal. Every bit his female counter-part. Alex Goran: Just think of me as yourself, only with a vagina. Alex brings to the silver screen a character that is extraordinarily rare; a real WOMAN. "She doesn’t temper her desires at all. She makes clear her needs and expects to have the world accommodate them. It’s not a character we often see on-screen, and when we do, more often than not she’s bereft of dignity." - (Vera Farmiga interview: Chats 'Up in the Air' and her craft) Anybody who starts going on slut-shaming gets a big BOO! from me. Yes, she's cheating. But the point here is the dignity portrayed by a woman of the same mold as a man; the corporate and ambitious high flyer. That is so noteworthy in of itself. Alex as a character just blows me away. Natalie has a running dialogue with Alex that is very relevant for women about women (and feminism) - AND VERY RELEVANT for the ladies in their 20s. Natalie also attempts to feebly challenge Ryan's entrenched beliefs about commitment; his lifestyle or life choices. But she does appear to plant a seed in Ryan to believe in something more; about sharing a life with someone and to take that risk. After a harrowing sequence of events including the suicide of one of her hatchet jobs, Natalie leaves the company. Ryan and Alex's relationship develops against a backdrop of Natalie's challenges in work and love, and the wedding of his younger sister. He is left to question his beliefs of the "empty backpack", and the resultant empty life. No one to turn to, no one to bear witness, no purpose brought on by family. Ryan and Alex begin to fall in love. And Ryan begins to change. Unfortunately, Alex is just not available to reciprocate. And Ryan is left ... with an empty backpack. And where does all this "change" hit home? It is when Ryan hits his 10 Million frequent flyer miles. He has been so utterly and irrevocably changed. He eventually gets it: Natalie: How can you not think about that? How does it not even cross your mind that you might want a future with someone? Ryan: It's simple; you know that moment when you look into somebody's eyes and you can feel them staring into your soul and the whole world goes quiet... just for a second? Natalie: Yes! Ryan: Right, well I don't. He now does. He is left with a philosophy or belief system that shattered to its core. And suddenly, it doesn't look so great any more.