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Flash Movie Review: Flight
If the occasional bump or rumble disturbs you while flying in an airplane, then the beginning of this film will make you start traveling by train. I love to fly but found myself holding my breath during the intense flight crash scene. Gratefully I never experienced a problem when flying, since the time of my first airplane ride at 12 years old. An airline was offering 30 minute flight tours around the city, so a friend and I traveled to the airport to take a ride. At that time it was one of the most exhilarating things I had ever done. Keep in mind this was at a time when traveling by plane was easy and respectful. These days flying is more like riding an elevator without cables: passengers being herded towards their seats, the doors close, people squeezed together and when the doors open they are in a different location. In one of his best performances Denzel Washington (Safe House, Training Day) was pilot Whip Whitaker who valiantly steered a disabled plane into a crash landing. When he finally awakened and found himself in a hospital bed, Whip soon discovered the federal investigation was zeroing toward his dark secret. Due to the trailer, some people may be expecting an action film and that was not the case. This film was a study guide into a man’s character. Besides Denzel, Don Cheadle’s (Hotel Rwanda, Traitor) acting was impeccable as he portrayed lawyer Hugh Lang. All the humor in the movie was expertly handled by John Goodman (The Big Lebowski, Roseanne-TV) as drug dealer Harling Mays. One issue I had was with the subplot involving the female drug addict; the character seemed out of place in the way she was introduced and used to accentuate Denzel’s character. The director Robert Zemeckis (Cast Away, The Polar Express) kept the viewer interested in the main players by digging deeper into their characters and allowing the tension to build. Thanks to this movie I now have something else to worry about the next time I fly. Brief scenes with blood.
3 1/4 stars
Flash Movie Review: Unstoppable
I used to have a love/hate relationship with trains growing up. As a little kid I never wanted to sit by the windows when the train was above ground. I thought my weight would tip the train over, so I always tried to stay close to the center of the train car. Talk about having a poor self image as a little overweight child. Only when the train would go below ground would I finally relax, since I felt the dark tunnels we traveled would always keep us upright. At least that is how I rationalized it. These days when I travel to a new city I make a point of always using their public transportation; it makes me feel like an adventurer. Seeing a trailer for this action film, I thought I could easily roll with the story. I still get a kick out of the train rides at amusement parks, so this movie looked like it would be an exciting thrill ride. Inspired by true events, human error caused an unmanned freight train to leave the yard, with its cargo of toxic chemicals. With no air brakes the train would continue to pick up speed until it derailed, causing a life threatening disaster. If seasoned engineer Frank, played by Denzel Washington (The Great Debaters, American Gangster), along with young conductor Will, played by Chris Pine (Star Trek, People Like Us), had any chance to stop a tragedy from occurring, they would have to work together in a race against time. At the start I enjoyed the no nonsense approach the director took in setting up the basis of the story. I was curious to see how the action would be sustained, since in my mind a train seemed like it would have less exciting options than if the story was about a hijacked or crippled airplane. It was a false concern; the action kept a steady pace as the tension grew incrementally. The acting was nothing special to me. Denzel was doing his Denzel method, being on autopilot while Chris did not bring anything new to the table. I thought Rosario Dawson (Seven Pounds, Sin City) did a good job as Connie who worked at the train operating center. This film is fine for those who want to experience the thrill of an amusement park ride without waiting in line.
2 2/3 stars — DVD
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