Flight - 3 smiles

“Flight” is about addiction, illustrating the power of compulsive drinking and the collateral damage that results from it. And if not for its star, Denzel Washington, it would be just another movie about an addict who refuses to admit he has a problem. But because of Washington’s charisma and ability, you don’t mind spending time with Whip Whitaker although he’s not a likeable person and it’s difficult to watch his journey through despair and self-destruction. The twist in the story is that Whip is an airline captain. One day, on a routine trip from Florida to Atlanta through stormy weather, his plane suffers a mechanical failure and goes into an uncontrolled dive. Whip, whose blood alcohol is three times the legal limit for driving and who snorted cocaine for breakfast, shows remarkable skill in landing the plane, losing only six people in the crash. If he had been sober would he have saved all of the people or would he have been killed in the resulting crash, like all of the pilots who were put in similar conditions in a simulator?

Director Robert Zemeckis doesn’t really address these questions. He’s more interested in first presenting Whip as a hero and then painstakingly deconstructing the man over the remainder of the movie. You might charge false advertising because the trailers lead you to believe it’s more about the crash and Whip’s unorthodox thinking that saved so many lives. Washington excels at portraying damaged individuals and his performance is multi-layered. Kelly Reilly provides a counterpoint to Washington as an addict who has already hit bottom, admitted her failings, and is scratching her way to recovery. John Goodman seems to be having fun as Whip’s drug dealer, but Don Cheadle and Bruce Greenwood aren’t given enough to do. “Flight” tells a universal story and the acting is top-notch. Question is, do you want to spend over two hours with an addict? 11/2/12