Flight

Plot synopsis:
In the opening scene in a hotel room, Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington) wakes up before it's time to take off on a new flight, after an evening of drinking, drugs and sex with one of his plane's flight attendants, Katerina Marquez (Nadine Velazquez) who crawls out of his bed to get dressed. Still trying to rouse himself from his hangover, his phone rings, and he answers a call from his ex-wife Deana (Garcelle Beauvais). Deana wants to discuss putting their son through a private school, but Whip doesn't want to discuss it at the moment, claiming he'll talk to her about it when he gets back to Atlanta.While Katerina quickly heads off to the airport to prepare, Whip is unable to collect himself until he snorts a line of cocaine. This wakes him up, and he is next headed to the airport, where rain pounds the building and the airplanes. Whip does a quick inspection of the airplane and then boards it speaking with a flight attendant named Margaret (Tamara Tunie), and meeting his co-pilot Ken Evans (Brian Geraghty).Ken seems a little apprehensive of Whip (who is wearing sunglasses and takes a hit from his oxygen mask), but goes along with his story that he's alright to fly. The plane takes off through rain, and Whip pushes it higher and faster, attempting to find a break in the clouds, causing the ride to be turbulent. However, once Whip finds a break in the storm, the plane stabilizes, and the passengers applaud.Shortly after takeoff, Whip addresses the passengers personally, while secretly pouring three mini-vodka bottles into a bottle of orange juice. After disposing of the bottles, Whip returns to the cockpit, and naps after turning control of the plane over to Ken.On the ground, in a small town in Georgia, a prostitute, Nicole (Kelly Reilly), leaves a hotel after a night with a client and calls her drug connection from her cell phone. She shows up at the guy's place, where a porno film is being shot and buys a small quantity of heroin from him; he warns her not to shoot too much because it hasn't been cut properly. He also asks her to play a part in the movie but she refuses and leaves. At home she finds her sleazy complex manager in her apartment. The two argue over her unpaid rent and he propositions her sexually. She coaxes him out the door and slams it in his face. Spotting a hypodermic needle in her things, she takes a hit of the drugs she bought from her connection and passes out from an overdose.Meanwhile, a sudden jolt stirs Whip as the plane suddenly pitches into an uncontrolled dive. Steering mechanisms don't respond, and numerous houses can be seen out the window. Staying relatively calm, Whip has the plane's fuel ditched, before proposing a crazy maneuver: roll the airplane so they're flying inverted. One of the stewardesses, Camila, leaves her seat to aid some of the passengers and is pitched onto the ceiling of the cabin when the plane rolls. A young boy falls out of his seat when the plane rolls over and Katerina unbuckles herself, lifts the boy back into his seat and buckles him in.With Ken and Margaret's help, Whip inverts the plane, leveling it out, before rolling it to crash-land on its belly in a field near a small church -- the plane's wing collides with the church's tower, shearing it off. The ground impact slams Whip's head against the steering yoke, knocking him out. Whip regains consciousness long enough to see himself being dragged out of the plane by the local parishioners and long enough to see Ken is slumped over in his seat, bleeding from his head. Margaret is also bleeding and screaming. Katerina's body also lies near Margaret, presumably dead.Just before the plane crashes into the church, it flies directly over Nicole's apartment complex where we see her being taken out on a stretcher.Whip wakes up in a hospital where he finds his friend Charlie Anderson (Bruce Greenwood) in the room. Though Charlie claims Whip saved a lot of lives with his maneuver, he tells Whip (off-the-record) that there were six deaths, including Katerina and Camila as well as four passengers.Shortly afterwards, Whip is visited by an acquaintance of his, Harling Mays (John Goodman). Harling brings Whip some cigarettes and some extra things, and fields Whip's request for some clothing and items from his house. Harling is jovial about the treatment Whip is receiving, saying Whip should demand better medications. Harling also tells Whip that his heroics during the crash have called the media out to his home and the hospital.Looking for a place to smoke one evening, Whip goes into a stairwell, where he encounters Nicole. They are soon joined by a cancer patient named Mark (James Badge Dale). The cancer patient soon realizes who Whip is, and steers the conversation towards God and if disasters can be prevented or not. In Mark's mind, there's no way to stop things from happening. To him, he was meant to get cancer, just as much as the three were meant to meet in the stairwell, and Whip was meant to land that plane. After Mark leaves, Whip tells Nicole that he would like to see her after they are released from the hospital, and she gives him her address.Eventually, Whip is released, and Harling sneaks him out a back way to avoid the press at the front of the hospital. Whip has Harling take him to his father's old farmhouse out in the country, where a small Cessna resides in a nearby garage. Going through the house, Whip finds all the alcohol stored around the place, and empties it all out. He also disposes of a small supply of marijuana.Whip refuses to respond to any of the messages on his phone, but is surprised when Charlie calls him at the farmhouse, leaving a message to meet him after a medical check-up in a few days. Whip gives into the request, and sits down with Charlie, and Hugh Lang (Don Cheadle), a lawyer from Chicago who has been sent by the pilots union. Hugh explains that at the crash site, blood was drawn from Whip, indicating he had an elevated blood alcohol level, and cocaine in his system. The two indicate to Whip that Hugh is going to fight the findings, but that Whip could face charges of manslaughter, and jail time.Whip does not handle the news well, and heads off to a liquor store afterwards. He then attempts to find Nicole's address, and finds her being kicked out of her apartment by the landlord. Whip manages to help her pay her rent, and seeing as she has nowhere to go (and her car won't start), offers to let her stay with him.Over the next few days, Whip continues to avoid the press, but soon realizes that his reputation could be plagued by the others who were around him. At Katerina's funeral, he meets Margaret, who claims she could tell that Whip was drunk when she encountered him that morning. Whip then starts to get personal, claiming that if not for him, she could have ended up dead as well.In the hospital, his co-pilot Ken explains he hasn't told the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), who have been investigating the crash, about his suspicions about Whip's condition at the time. Even though he may never walk again, Ken and his wife believe that his surviving was a miracle. The couple is strictly religious and insist that Whip pray with them, which he does reluctantly.Meanwhile, Nicole has been turning her life around, getting a job, and attending an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. She suggests Whip come along with her, but he is unable to stomach much of the meeting. Shortly afterwards, Nicole finds Whip working on the Cessna in his father's garage. Whip claims that they can fly away and start over, but Nicole refuses his advancements, and Whip (who has been drinking) angrily yells after her as she leaves.Eventually, Nicole leaves Whip and he grows even more out-of-control with his drinking. When the press finally find the farmhouse, he drives off and ends up in the neighborhood of his ex-wife and son. Both demand that he leave, but Whip refuses to listen, causing them to call the police on him.Needless to say, Charlie and Hugh are incensed at Whip's behavior, claiming that this does not bode well for their upcoming case with the NTSB. Even though Hugh has managed to have Whip's alcohol test thrown out, they still need to have Whip present his side of the story to Ellen Block (Melissa Leo), the investigator for the NTSB.Whip gives in to their requests to clean up his act, and the evening before the hearing, he is escorted to a hotel room. A security guard is stationed at the door, and all traces of alcohol have been cleaned out of the mini-fridge in the room. Whip attempts to relax, but finds himself unable to sleep or even go over the documents that Hugh has prepared for him.Later on, he hears a thumping sound. He soon finds it leads to the room adjoining his, where the door has been left unlocked. In the room he finds a fully-stocked mini-fridge with alcohol. Whip looks over the contents of the fridge for a short time and even uncaps a bottle of vodka. He hesitates before downing the bottle, places it on the counter and leaves. A few moments later, he snatches the bottle.The next day, Charlie and Hugh show up, but when Whip doesn't answer the door, they find him passed out in the bathroom with a cut on his head, and empty mini-bottles littering the room. With the hearing's time coming closer, they hatch a bold plan. They call in Harling Mays, who provides Whip with the cocaine he needs to get himself woken up. After paying off Harling, Whip, Charlie, and Hugh head to the hearing.During the hearing (with Ellen Block presiding), it is determined that the cause of the plane's locked dive, was a damaged screw in the tail-section that had not been repaired a few years prior. This seems to exonerate Whip, but Ellen then brings up the findings of two empty mini-liquor bottles in one of the trash cans near the pilot's cabin. Given the blood-test findings (of which Whip's has been thrown out due to outdated equipment and procedure in drawing his blood), only one other member of the flight crew could have potentially stolen the vodka: Katerina, who has a documented history of alcohol and drug abuse.When Ellen asks Whip if it's possible that Katerina drank the vodka, he hesitates before confessing that he drank the vodka. Charlie and Hugh attempt to quell Whip's words, but he confesses to his alcohol problems, claiming that he is drunk at the moment, and has taken cocaine.After the hearing, we segue into a small group in a prison, with Whip among the prisoners. Whip explains to the others about his confession, and that how it seemed that that moment at the NTSB hearing was his breaking point: he couldn't tell another lie.Epilogue. 13 months later.In his time in prison, Whip has become clean of alcohol, and has gained the trust of his ex-wife and son again. His son Will soon after comes to visit him, asking to interview him for a report, to find out more about his father, whom it seems has been absent through much of his life.

Tags: suspenseful, home movie

Review:
Denzel Washington is William "Whip" Whitaker, an alcoholic pilot who, after a night of heavy drinking, remains drunk well into the morning he is to fly a plane into Georgia.
But it is all about the lead character, Captain "Whip" Whitaker (Denzel Washington), a man who is a pilot and an alcoholic.
Robert Zemeckis' latest film Flight starring Academy Award Winner Denzel Washington is not only thoroughly entertaining and terrifically structured, it encompasses a soul that Hollywood hasn't really delivered in quite some time.
The film, that closed the New York Film Festival, is simply one of the best films of the year.Flight tells the story of Whip Whitaker, an airline pilot that saves a plane and nearly all its passengers from a certain death.
Denzel gives an access root into the character for all intended purposes, a clear understanding of the inner resistance that will not only plague Whip, but the movie audience as well.The story doesn't seem like an obvious choice for Robert Zemeckis, who has excelled in genres that have provided masterpieces like Forrest Gump (1994) and Cast Away (2000).
Denzel Washington does an awesome, believable job as an alcoholic airplane captain, struggling with his addiction and accusations after the plane crash.
Flight is the story of a commercial pilot Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington) who is able to land a defective plane with extraordinary skill, maneuvering it into an inverted position in order to slow the decent.
Cheadle and Greenwood have great scenes together, Reilly is a wonderful find (I didn't realize she was British - excellent southern US accent), and Goodman not only steals his scenes, it's almost as if he's acting in an entirely different movie altogether.I wouldn't recommend Flight.
Having dealt with Delorean time-machines, cartoon rabbits and autistic heroes in his previous productions, Zemeckis takes a dark turn with his latest effort as he teams up with two time Oscar-winning actor Denzil Washington to present a film about the temptation of alcohol and how it can affect the life of its central character.
While it has been done before in other alcohol-related films like The Lost Weekend (1944) and Leaving Las Vegas (1995), you can't help but be intrigued when you know that Denzil has an Oscar nomination for it.William "Whip" Whitaker (Washington) is a pilot who has an alcohol addiction.
As he continues to indulge himself to booze, those around him including lawyer Hugh Lang (Cheadle), close friend Harling Mays (Goodman) and former drug addict-turned-new love interest Nicole (Reilly) try to support him.As soon as the film starts, you know straight away this isn't Zemeckis's usual territory as we see Whip surrounded by empty beer bottles, lines of cocaine and a sexy (and naked!) Latino woman which sets the tone for what the character's life is all about.
Having spent several years starring in average action-flicks, Denzil Washington manages to reclaim responsibility as one of Hollywood's best actors with his stunning performance of a man whose addiction leaves him in a troubled state of mind.
Audiences will also find it hard to root for Whip as he is presented as unlikeable for the majority of the film and even when we get to the important courtroom scenes, we struggle to really know whether to care about his fate.VERDICT: Robert Zemeckis makes a worthy return to live-action films with this gritty but slightly underwhelming character study which is strengthened by an award-winning comeback from Denzil Washington and a mid-air sequence of thrilling proportions..
Flight takes the real life crash of an Alaska Airlines plane and turns it into a story about alcohol and redemption.The fiction is hard to take.
In his first live action film in 12 years, director Robert Zemeckis brings the story of an impaired pilot flying a stricken airliner to the big screen.
A pathetic message comes from this film, and an even worse (is that possible) the inquiry scene does not in anyway redeem the story.All it does is give people the idea that combining alcohol and drugs helps you stabilize, perform better and hide your drunk junkie state.
Oh and Goodmans role makes drug dealers look cool(in an American way)...if I was in the hotel room when he came in shouting orders, I would have pushed him head first out the window.It has been happening, increasing for many years but this hits a new low for rubbish American culture being spread around the world.Denzel must be desperate to do this movie...a previously highly respected actor..
There was no real surprises in this film and it was pretty predictable from beginning to end, but I think that director Robert Zemeckis did an excellent job telling this story.
There is no depth to this movie, no real insight into the trials that a pilot may face after a disaster and how aircraft mechanical malfunctions can be handled by a talented pilot.The movie is instead about Denzel's ridiculous alcohol problem that he would have no realistic way to sustain throughout a career as a commercial pilot, since commercial flight crew in the U.S. are regularly subjected to being breathalyzed and drug tested by the FAA.
It's a sober piece about a man's moral choices, built around a creditable central performance from Denzel Washington as Whip Whitaker – an alcoholic pilot who, still drunk and high from the night before, manages to land his airplane after a mechanical failure sends it into a 4,800 ft dive.
Even the man most in Whitaker's corner, played by Bruce Greenwood in a straight-laced but well-played exasperated performance, doesn't know what the hell to do with him after a while.In a sense the film is like the best episode of the TV show 'Intervention' never made: we see this character in full dimensions, and it goes further with the performance by its star.
The captain William "Whip" Whitaker (Denzel Washington) of South Jet Air is a divorced man with an estranged ex-wife and son and is having an affair with the flight attendant Katerina "Trina" Marquez (Nadine Velazquez).
But Whip is an alcoholic and can not control addiction."Flight" is a powerful drama about alcoholism with top-notch performance of Denzel Washington.
In an epic tale of man versus booze, Denzel Washington takes flight in one of his best roles as a deeply disturbed alcoholic pilot.
The start and the end provide more bombastic scenes, the first plane crash sequence is very engrossing as it puts the audience right besides these characters in their desperate time.Flight could've been an entirely bleak or somber movie, but it takes us into a man's journey to face his demon, merely as audience and with tongue-in-cheek humor.
After the opening scene in which pilot Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington) wakes up with a monster hangover yet drinks some more alcohol, smokes some weed and does a line of cocaine, it's clear the trailer for Flight was massively misleading.
If the star of the movie is Denzel Washington and the director is ( Robert Zemeckis ) who directed legend films such as (Forrest Gump 1994, What Lies Beneath 2000, Back to the Future trilogy), so the result will be fantasticI was really afraid before going to the cinema cause i thought it is the same story about flights, but wan't trust me the film is excellent, the whole crew were marvelous at their Patrs, and Denzel Washington gave us his finest role he had ever done.I went for the same movie three times just to see Denzel Washington performance, and for those who want to be a great actors have to see Denzel Washington performance over and over again he convinced you from the beginning of the movie till the endi hope he gets the Oscar for this year, but I think her will lose it for Daniel Day-Lewis in (Lincoln).
The character of Nicole (Kelly Reilly)strikes up a friendship with Whitaker and they almost become kindred spirits as they are both affected by alcoholism - again her character was quite poorly written, but unlike Whitaker she was, at least, fairly likable.Another problem with this film is that it's almost impossible to sympathise with the main character; He willingly boarded an aircraft knowing that he'd had no sleep and was pumped full of drugs and alcohol and he knowingly risked the lives of all his passengers - yes I'm aware this is a plot device for the entire film, but it does make it difficult to root for Whitaker (especially when we learn how selfish he is throughout the film).There are other things that stretch credibility such as Whitaker being able to crash-land a plane and save 96 lives out of 102 whilst he's under the influence of alcohol/drugs and had no sleep the night before, yet 10 other fully trained pilots crashed their planes and ended up killing everyone on board in a simulated recreation of the event whilst they were stone cold sober.
Here the actor gives one of his most powerful performances in years.The fine supporting cast includes Kelly Reilly, delivering a strong performance as Nicole, a young drug user whom Whip befriends, Tamara Tunie as Margaret, a flight attendant and friend, Bruce Greenwood as his union representative and friend, and a scene-stealing John Goodman as Harland Mays, his hipster supplier.
) Still, Flight is an exciting action thriller, skillfully directed by Zemeckis and flawlessly acted by Washington, who creates an intense character study of an alcoholic, a man in crisis unable to stop his downward spiral until he begins to realize that he can't fly away from himself or his real issues.
"Nobody could've landed that plane like I did," Captain 'Whip' Whitaker (Denzel Washington) proclaims in "Flight".
"Flight", despite its painfully sluggish pace, captivates audiences thanks to a gripping storyline and a haunting performance from Denzel Washington.The morning after a sleepless night filled with drugs and a dangerous amount of alcohol, Captain Whitaker shoots some cocaine to straighten up for his short routine flight to Atlanta.
After controversial toxicity tests reveal the state the pilot was in during the flight, Captain Whitaker finds himself torn between hiding the truth to remain a hero or facing his problems head on for the first time and losing his newfound fame.The special effects used in "Flight" produce quite the visual spectacle during the plane crash.
Being allowed in to see each event as the other characters in the movie do, audiences truly become emotionally invested in Whip's life."Flight" takes moviegoers on quite a ride as they watch Captain 'Whip' Whitaker struggle with substance abuse, fame, and regret after his heroic emergency plane landing.
The film depends on an actor skilled enough to reach the depths necessary for us to believe this guy, despite his cocky pilot strut and unmatched flying skills, is little more than a mentally weak addict.There are a couple of outstanding supporting performances here: John Goodman as Harling Mays, a colorful and energetic, free-wheeling dealer who works miracles with Whitaker when he appears to gone to function; and Kelly Reilly (Mary Watson from the Sherlock Holmes movies) as fellow addict Nicole, who connects with Whip and tries to help him.
The premise of this movie focuses on a pilot by the name of William Whip Whitaker who becomes a hero after saving the lives of countless passengers on a crashing plane.
What I came to realize is that it is a movie about the investigation of an alcoholic.Denzel Washington's character Whip Whitaker is portrayed as an exceptional yet alcoholic airline pilot.
The movie revolved around Whitaker and his alcohol and drug problems, yet it does not investigate any of the problems that cause the plane crash or the character's hardships.
An alcoholic will do ANYTHING BUT accept blame for anything....flight attendant scores on a tox report, SHE did it!....NEXT!!No seasoned alky would EVER do a coup de gras if it might mean no access to another drink.....and he was loaded during the hearing?Great job by Denzel....awful horrendous writing of the final scene!You have to wonder all of the believable takes that are on the cutting- room floor....this ending ruined the entire experience..
Flight being over 120 minutes and already treading down a familiar road from the getgo, there was no way the decent directing from the amazing Robert Zemeckis or the great Best Actor nominated performance of Washington could save this from being a bit of a bore.
The plot moves on when Whip drugged and drunk but extremely lucid, operates the Flight 227 to Atlanta which, after some turbulences, starts to fall apart, and he is forced to crash land it in a field, managing to save the lives of almost everyone on board.
(Frank Capra comes to mind, but he's another order of director at his best, which he wasn't always.) Zemeckis is smart and competent, however, and he makes this movie roll right along with a quiet fascination for the process of NTSB investigators and alcohol tests, not the most exciting material.Don't let me leave out the plane crash--this is no spoiler, I think--which is terrific and harrowing, and with the final smartphone footage from the ground you'll be gasping.
With that in mind, I think it's only fair to give Zemeckis, the creator of such beloved films as Back to the Future and Forrest Gump, the benefit of the doubt if Flight, his first foray back into the realm of live-action cinema, shows a few signs of rust.When his commercial aircraft experiences a massive mechanical malfunction, Captain Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington) goes above and beyond to save the lives of his crew and passengers, taking evasive maneuvers that perhaps no other pilot could have managed.
His story takes a turn, however, when it becomes known that Whitaker has a serious issue with alcohol and drug addiction and was in fact drunk at the time of the crash.
As investigators close in on his condition and the heaping pile of lies he's told to cover it up, Whitaker's drinking problems reach a whole new level, alienating his only allies, heroin addict Nicole (Kelly Reilly) and company lawyer Hugh (Don Cheadle), and bringing himself closer and closer to a breaking point.There are moments of sheer brilliance in Flight that reminded me of just how good Zemeckis can be when he's on his game, especially in the early going.
But whereas Flight requires a great performance in order to make the movie work, Washington's is only a good one that holds some real strength but doesn't measure up against the man's better works.
Flight is not a film about planes or a pilot's life, but it is an amazing character study about the demons of a man.
What's so great about the movie is how you actually sympathize with the character of Denzel Washington: I mean there are literally many times during the film when I actually was talking to Denzel in my head like "Oh don't do it man, don't drink that stuff, come on" And I believe that says a lot about the movie, cause you actually care for the characters in this.
In taking on the role of Whip, Denzel Washington delivers a cracking good performance about a character that you eventually almost love to hate.
Apart from a terrific performance by Denzel Washington and an amazing flight crash scene, this movie lacks depth.
Zemeckis's live action film never a disappointment though it might not be for everyone since the trailer is misleading and you end up expecting something else.Flight is about an alcoholic pilot who saves hundreds of live when his plane went malfunctioned.
Despite an Oscar worthy performance by Denzel Washington, the films too heavy- handed, redundant, and never quite takes full flight.
A large part of the praise for this film goes to Zemeckis' professional direction (hey, this guy's roots are in Lithuania!)Not usually we see great addiction dramas with performances like in "Flight".
Flight brings two talents under one roof- Robert Zemeckis and Denzel Washington and when you hear their name out , you can exactly expect a wholesome entertainment with some power packed performance and superb direction.Known for his alcoholic addiction , Whip Whitaker(Denzel Washington) fights the case for which he is accused of crashing an airplane and killing 6 people on board.After a long time , Robert Zemeckis returns to reality cinema , taking break from live-action animation movies, and gives us a path breaking film never attempted before.
Denzel Washington stars as an alcoholic, drug addicted pilot.
'FLIGHT': Four and a Half Stars (Out of Five)Denzel Washington gives one of his best performances to date in this dark and disturbing drama about an alcoholic airline pilot who saves nearly a hundred people from dying in a plane crash but then faces possible charges of negligence due to substance abuse.
I am happy to say that while nowhere near a perfect movie, Flight is better than I thought it would be and Denzel, is able to show off his acting abilities in a film where there is no real action, or adventure, but rather a fairly well developed character study that deals with the issue of substance abuse and in this case, alcoholism.
Yes, Denzel Washington is very good here and most likely he will be nominated for an Oscar for his performance, but at times I didn't always feel that Denzel was the right choice to play this character.
Flight (2012) **** (out of 4) Denzel Washington turns in one of the strongest performances of his career playing Walt Whitaker, a pilot who becomes an overnight hero after he saves the majority of the passengers on a doomed plane.
Sure their is an epic crash (Due to the amazing job done by the film crew it looked totally real) however this story revolves about pilot William "Whip" Whitaker (Washington) a divorced heavy drinking/partying who has with that life style surprise surprise a drinking problem.