It "sticks the landing"

Rating: 9/10 (23 December 2016)

Here is a movie that got very good reviews, did very well at the box office & after a half hour into it isn't really flying. It is a "Clint Eastwood movie" starring Tom Hanks so you give it the benefit of doubt.
Then this movie finds its thrust. It gets better & better as it goes along before it really sticks its landing (to borrow a term from gymnastics).
The ever reliable Tom Hanks --my generation's "Jimmy Stewart"-- turns in another fine performance as the unflappable Capt. Chesley Sullenberger who, of course, landed a United Airways flight on the Hudson River with all 155 souls surviving while 9/11 was still fresh on our collective minds. Yeah, it winds up being a "feel good movie" that unexpectedly begins as a "feel bad movie".
This movie brings back some some very good memories while exploring some under-reported angles. The script becomes very crisp & witty while spreading credit to to "Sully's" co-pilot Jeff Skiles (nicely played by Aaron Eckhardt), crew & first responders. There is also a cool role played by the air traffic controller who thought he lost the flight.
There is a surprising lot of stuff going on in this under 2 hour movie. The ever efficient Eastwood directs it with his usual assured economy & rarely overplays his hand emotionally & cinematically. Laura Linney must also be applauded for her touching "phone scenes" (those could not have been easy for an actor).
This is one of the best films of the year.