Great Denzel, great story

Rating: 8/10 (19 February 2013)

A superb depiction of a man whose life is out of control and how far he has to fall to get it back. Nobody can do this as well as Denzel Washington can and he richly deserves his Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Whip Whitaker. There are some very fine supporting players as well--Kelly Reilly is moving and completely believable as Whip's recovering drug addict girlfriend and Tamara Tunie is heartbreaking as one of the flight attendants. If you can watch the penultimate scene, as Whip says to himself "God help me" as he prepares himself to confess what he did, without tears coming to your eyes, maybe this movie is not for you. Watching this scene put me in mind of what someone like James Stewart would have done with a role like this if this movie had been made 50 years ago.