Politically unsubtle, contrived to the max -- and boring to boot!

Rating: 1/10 (13 June 2005)

The main purpose of the terminal is to make Liberals feel good about loathing the Department of Homeland Security as a symbol of the US government. And so, director Spielberg endeavors to create a twilight-zone like environment where poor Tom Hanks is trapped as a citizen without a country by evil and ambitious Deputy Homeland Security Director Stanley Tucci. The movie can't even stay true to its own premise for 15 minutes. Tom Hanks is introduced to us as a Khrakozian tourist who can't wait to indulge in popular NYC culture, but is so ill prepared he speaks no English at all. Stanley Tucci tells us He can't grant asylum to this man who lost his country mid-flight because Krakozia is too small and unimportant to America, yet CNN is showing footage of the government coup every five minutes, etc., etc. People are nasty to Hanks throughout the movie's first half for no reason at all, and we are treated to many different camera angles focusing on really hopeless expressions on Tom Hanks' face. I could go on, but I've lost interest -- just as I did in this terrible film.