"I've flown for 42 years. I'm being judged on 208 seconds."

Rating: 7/10 (30 December 2016)

"Sully" from 2016 is based on the true story of pilot Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger's dramatic landing of a plane carrying 155 people in the Hudson River when birds attacked his engines in 2009. I can still see the photos of the passengers standing on the wings waiting to be picked up. Naturally Hollywood grabbed the story immediately.
Sully (Tom Hanks) is hailed as a hero. He doesn't seem to be one born for the spotlight -- he's a quiet person who really felt like he was just doing his job. But behind the scenes and the pictures of him as a hero, Sully's actions become the subject of a tense NTSB investigation.
When the plane had to make an emergency landing, he was told to head for LaGuardia, but Sully said that the plane would not make it. The NTSB disputes this by performing simulations, and also states that one of the engines was still working. Sully felt he had no choice but to make his landing strip the Hudson River.
Sully demands to see the simulations and also insists the second engine, so far lost at sea, was not working. His copilot, Jeff Skiles (Aaron Eckhart) backs him up, and more importantly, no one was seriously injured.
Very good film, if on the slow side, and it's not very exciting. It is, however, interesting and absorbing as we watch Sully attempt to prove that he was right, and insisting that the simulations are done in the same time frame as he had piloting the plane.
Tom Hanks gives a good, reserved performance of someone whom greatness was thrust upon, a man who loved his work and was proud of it. Laura Linney has a small part as his wife.
If Hanks' performance is subtle, so is Eastwood's direction, emphasizing the humanity of the story rather than going for over the top moments or big music. Truly an excellent job.