Michael Reeves A&E Reporter

Flight Directed by Robert Zemeckis Starring: Denzel Washington, John Goodman, Kelly Reily B

we were in full flight from reality. Alcoholics Anonymous

Flight is a contrived film full of clichs about addiction, recovery and personal responsibility. However, a great performance by the ever-reliable Denzel Washington saves the picture from an otherwise disastrous fate.

Washington commands the screen with his convincing portrayal of Whip Whitakeran alcoholic airline pilot who, despite not being able to care for himself, is routinely responsible for the lives of hundreds of others in Robert Zemeckiss first live action film since 2000s Cast Away.

The first time we see Whip Whitaker he is lying face down in the bed of an Orlando hotel room. A naked woman repeatedly walks through the frame as Whitaker scrambles to answer his cellphone. While talking to his ex-wife about his sons tuition, Whitaker picks up what to anyone other than an alcoholic would call an empty beer and sucks the last few remaining drops from the bottle.

Whitaker ends the call and struggles to the nightstand where a strategically placed line of cocaine waits. He rolls up a hundred-dollar bill and hurriedly snorts the numbing white powder. The next shot cuts to a fully functioning Whitaker, pristinely adorned in his pilots uniform, exiting the same hotel room rather triumphantly. The undertones of insecurity, which had only moments ago bettered him, have disappearedhes all confidence now. Washington skillfully moves between Whitakers vulnerability and his aired self-assurance throughout.

After boarding an aircraft that will transport 102 souls to Atlanta, Whitaker is introduced to his co-pilot, Ken (Brian Geraghty, The Hurt Locker). Whitaker takes a hit of oxygen before blasting off into a thunderstorm, perhaps a little bit faster than he should. Once in the clear, Whitaker downs a cocktail and passes out, allowing Ken to fly the remainder of the trip.

But suddenly, everything goes wrong; Whitaker is jolted out his slumber and finds that the aircraft is plummeting toward Earth. Whitaker assures his crew that hes in control while attempting to pull out of the nosedive by inverting the aircraft. The bizarre technique proves successful, and what would have otherwise been total devastation results in only six fatalities.

Here, the film takes an ugly turn toward the conventional by repeatedly suggesting that only faith can lead to redemption: the plane crashes into the back yard of a church, the co-pilot is a fanatical Christian (insert God is my co-pilot joke here), and a cancer patient lectures in a hospital stairwell about the importance of surrendering to Gods will. Flight screenwriter John Gatins (Real Steel) admittedly has a personal history with alcoholism and claims to have written the screenplay after five years of sobriety.

See the rest here:
Film Review: Denzel Washington’s powerful performance saves “Flight” from cliché