Up in the Air

Jason Reitman adapted the screenplay for Up in the Air from Walter Kirn's highly prescient novel, written long before the advent of the economic crisis we now find ourselves in. The film tells the story of Ryan Bingham (George Clooney), the hired gun of corporations who wish to outsource the icky business of firing it's employees. He flies from state to state and delivers the worst news an employee can get with compassion and understanding. Bingham crisscrosses the country with the frequency of a political candidate running for office, yet unlike the candidate, Bingham professes to love the travel and it's single-serving lifestyle. He maintains few familial ties, is unmarried and seems to revel in the isolation that drives so many of us to crave the sedentary pseudo-security of a nine-to-five. Soon, however, Bingham faces his industry's own form of downsizing when a young rookie named Natalie (Anna Kendrick) pitches the impersonal method of firing-by-computer. As Bingham faces a crises of self, he is forced to re-connect with people in myriad ways. He meets the sexy Alex Goran (played terrifically by Vera Farmiga), who, as his female mirror, proves more than a worthy adversary who has the potential to be a substantive mate. Bingham soon consents to return home for his sister's wedding, which is just the type of warm and fuzzy clusterfuck he's spent his life trying to avoid.
I've expressed my feelings about Clooney previously, and Up in the Air doesn't change my opinion. Clooney is as always, likeable and debonair, but never delivers the acting goods. Clooney has now reached A-level status by possessing extreme business savvy, and as a result gets the pick of the plummiest roles out there. This only serves to highlight his deficiencies, as he is usually surrounded by the best writing, acting and directing talent available. Jason Reitman is unequivocally in that category. He continuously gives us fresh and original films, whether written by him (Thank You For Smoking) or another writer (Juno). Reitman clearly inherited his father's feel for comedy, but has soared even higher with his ability to truly understand the poignancy of drama without schmaltz.
Jason Bateman, as Bingham's boss left me wanting more of him, while Anna Kendrick left me wanting both less of her and her irritating character. Kendrick plays Natalie as type-A neurotic to the core, with her angry typing and buttoned-up demeanor. I know Natalie is supposed to annoy me, but Kendrick's one-note whining results in a character with too little depth. Vera Farmiga though, has finally been given a role worthy of her talent. Her Alex is tough and sassy, but vulnerable and sensual as well. She takes her time, savoring each scene and we end up wishing we knew more women like her. Up in the Air is taut, topical and deeply touching, and given it's strength, I am not surprised it's been given the Best Picture nod. The themes it explores (human connection, isolation, how technology both bonds and separates us) are as relevant as it gets and Reitman simply captures these modern dilemmas better than most artists tackling the subject of late. Reitman subtly serves us the film's main paradox; that Ryan Bingham fervently opposes Natalie's idea of firing people as too cold and unconnected, yet he lives his life in an airplane specifically to cut himself off from human warmth and connection. My Comment is about this very conundrum we as humans face. In this hyper-advanced world of computer correspondence, it is so bloody easy to disconnect from the world. The Boomers and Gen-Xers are already having a difficult time dealing with the Paris Hilton generation that feels that it's completely acceptable to text during a meal at a restaurant (or a movie, or sex etc.). We exalt in new gadgets and how they make our lives easier and yet we want kick the teenager who cannot manage to say "thank you" when you hold a door open for him because he can't tear his eyes away from said gadget. All of us are guilty of it- we are grateful to be able to fire off an angry email rather than have an awkward confrontation. But we wonder why we can't sustain certain relationships, or why we can never truly mend the problems within ourselves. Well, it's because you can't have a real connection with someone via computers and listening to a Dr. Phil soundbite can never take the place of true one-to-one therapy. As much as we want to retreat behind the safety and comfort of the electronic walls we build up around ourselves, we can't. We can't because in end, the human connection is the only one really worth anything. Spoiler: Ryan Bingham figures that out.