CriticSociety- film reviews

Review

The Terminal

Director

Steven Spielberg

Year

2004

Rating

Reviewed by

José Ruiloba a.k.a. Morris

Review date

Tuesday, October 05, 2004

When the trailer for The Terminal popped up I became almost too excited. Spielberg and Hanks together again? With Catherine Zeta-Jones? And such a fun premise? I just couldn’t wait. But then the movie was released and critics were harsh with it. I started suspecting the worst, and when I finally went to see it I was very afraid I wouldn’t like it. You have to understand that Spielberg is a genius for me, and I have yet to see a movie he’s done that I don’t like. Fortunately enough, I loved this one too!

Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks) finds himself stranded in a New York airport after his country suffers a revolt while he was on the air. Now a citizen of nowhere, Viktor is forced to make a living inside one of the terminals, much to the chagrin of the terminal’s security chief (Stanley Tucci). That’s also where he meets conflicted stewardess Amelia (Catherine Zeta-Jones), who enchants him.

To really enjoy The Terminal you have to understand one thing first and foremost: it is a fable. I went in expecting a movie grounded in reality, but I soon understood Spielberg had a different agenda. Because, you see, what he tried to do with this movie is channel the best Frank Capra inside of him. In a way, the movie could be considered an old-fashioned romp that serves as homage to Capra movies. And that’s a compliment actually.

I’ve read the movie is actually based (or inspired by) the real story of a guy who still lives in a Paris airport. Don’t be fooled, you won’t find a dramatic movie based on that story. Instead this is a heart-warming, feel-good, crowd-pleasing movie if there ever was one. There’s only one subplot that is resolved in a way that does not fit with the whole cheerful vibe, but that’s just a minor quibble. The movie is consistently uplifting in a magical way.

Take for instance the whole fountain thing, or the whole dinner sequence (one of the movie’s best by the way), or the way Viktor suddenly finds a useful way to earn honest money, or the whole Enrique (Diego Luna) and Officer Torres (Zoe Saldana) thing. I’m actually amazed Spielberg went on with it. He took a huge risk and, at least for this viewer, he succeeded tremendously.

It also helps that Tom Hanks is such a great, great, great actor. I just don’t know what this guy can’t do. We’ve seen him in countless movies, yet from the very first scene in which we realize he’s a foreigner who doesn’t speak a word of English we believe him!!! And his character could’ve easily turned into a clown of sorts, or too much saccharine-inflicted. Not in his hands. He makes Vicktor a breathing, believable, amazing human being. And the rest of the cast is a perfect match for him.

One curious thingy: I barely noticed John Williams’ score!!!

“That’s something a man like you could never hope to understand.”

CriticSociety en Twitter | CriticSociety en Facebook

Share on Facebook | Share on Twitter