Flight

Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington), a highly skilled commercial pilot with a demanding work schedule wakes in hospital after surviving a near fatal air crash. Initially hailed as a hero for saving his crew and passengers from inevitable death, a series of troubling and potentially devastating revelations come to light exposing Captain Whitaker’s eventful social life outside of the cockpit and threaten to ground his high-flying, hard-rolling lifestyle with ruinous consequences.

Robert Zemeckis, director of previous box office triumphs Forrest Gump and Cast Away has produced a captivating and emotive film, balancing it’s dark subject matter and a spectacular mid-air catastrophe with a genuine human quality including flickers of humour that hit right on the mark. Flight’s opening scenes are particularly remarkable, including Zemeckis’s incredibly realistic and tensely crafted air crash which should put audiences off flying – at least for the near future, evoking a rollercoaster of emotions.

Denzel Washington’s Oscar nomination for Best Actor in a leading role is rightly deserved. His performance impressively encompasses the character of a successful and charismatic but ultimately flawed individual, with a gravitas that quite only he can.

John Goodman’s brilliant but all too brief comedic turn as Harling Mays; a close friend, confidant and occasional dealer to Whitaker is not to be missed. Also holding her ground amongst the Hollywood A-Listers is British rising star Kelly Reilly, exhibiting a harrowing portrayal of the troubled Nicole Maggen, a talented photographer struggling with drug addiction who befriends Whitaker during his stay in hospital which serves as a reminder of the extreme vulnerability of drug addiction and the difficult path to recovery.

Full of tension, strong performances, stunning cinematography and a journey that will keep audiences guessing until the very end; viewers should be reminded to fasten their seatbelts and prepare for Flight.

Katie Hudson