BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
This was a big movie during the 2012 award season. It’s a damn good movie. You can tell that by looking at the trailer and knowing a few facts about it. It’s a Robert Zemeckis movie, Denzel Washington is in a role he go crazy with, and the supporting cast includes Don Cheadle, Melissa Leo, and John Goodman. Why wouldn’t it be at least a “damn good movie”? I didn’t expect it to become my favorite movie or anything, but I knew it’d be a quality flick. The plot is pretty interesting. Denzel plays a party animal airplane pilot that ends up landing a plane full of people in a safe condition. The argument is if it was his fault the plane got in that situation because he was drunk or did he save their lives despite it. Then there are shades of grey to toss in there to really get you thinking. The reasoning aside, the movie ends up being about Denzell’s character and his struggle with overcoming his addictions and facing himself head on. I know that makes it sound like a feel-good movie, but it’s not. It’s just draining, but in a good way. You can’t help but get caught up in the experience and wrapped up in Denzell’s situation. A lot of people loved John Goodman in this. He’s an old school hippie drug dealer that just kind of bounces in and out. He’s a character you have to like, but the problem is that he’s an enabler to the main problem and focus. There’s another “shade of grey” to consider when taking in the whole movie and story. Denzell brings his A-game and the direction, especially the crash landing, is remarkable. I can understand how someone wouldn’t get too into this movie. For all of the action and drama, there is still a dry darkness to Denzell’s character that’s off-putting. Then again, that’s saying a lot about how great of a performance it was. You don’t need to rush out and see this movie as soon as possible, but if you get a chance take it. B+
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