Tom
Hanks, and the plot make "The Terminal" a top movie for the 30+ crowd.
There's
nothing blockbuster happening here, belying the expectation we have of any Tom
Hanks or Steven Spielberg movie, and yet it simmers near the top of Hanks' acting.
He's better here than in "Forrest Gump" and "Green Mile,"
and more persevering than in "Catch Me If You Can." It is a movie that's
easy to miss, but worth catching. Spielberg milks his skills as a sentimentalist,
and gives us a satisfying time at the theater.
Calling
it an intellectual movie is going too far, but it definitely is a thinking man's
comedy. If outlined into a genre, it might fall into a situation comedy. Summing
it up to "A man is confined to an airport terminal, and laughs ensue as he
tries to get by day-to-day," would miss the layers of characterization and
plot. The comedy evolves and unfolds slowly as we relate to Hanks and the troupe
of airport employees who support or hinder him in his plight.
Tom
Hanks is Viktor Navorski. He's flown in from his home, an Eastern European country,
which suffers a coup while Viktor is on a plane to New York City. His mission
is to acquire the autograph from a legendary jazz sax player to complete his late
father's collection. Because of the coup, however, Viktor has his passport and
related travel papers taken away. He becomes as stranded in an international airport
terminal as he was in "Castaway." Through Viktor's attempts to resolve
his quandary, we see Hanks sounding more Russian than Robin Williams as Vladimir
Ivanoff in "Moscow on the Hudson," convincing us he is truly from the
fictional country, Krakozhia.
As
in "Castaway," Viktor improvises humorously to create an environment
in which he can live. With tools left by construction workers and tradesmen, he
rebuilds a wall, creates a Napoleonesque fountain and he finds a niche within
the terminal that has gone unnoticed that he uses for a bedroom. He manages relationships
with airport employees. In one situation, he sets up a food worker with an immigration
official in trade for a meal. In another, he shows Amelia by example not all men
are cheats.
Drawbacks
and oversights discourage plausibility at times. From the pratfalls Viktor takes
when walking into windows, to the naive persona he displays, there is a surprising
stereotype of the Eastern European simpleton. Hanks, and especially Spielberg
should know better. Also, Viktor is quickly useful in one scene to help translate
for a Russian traveler, but never during Viktor's stay is a translator found for
him. NYC has every tongue known to man, and yet there is no one who speaks his
language? Why doesn't Amelia ever inquire more about Viktor's life? I don't buy
it. These holes should have been filled.
Catherine
Zeta-Jones as Amelia provides an average performance as a lonely flight attendant
in a seven-year affair with a married man. Her on/off interest in Viktor as a
subplot shows the romantic side of Hanks' character, but nothing of Jones. Being
attractive isn't enough to give us much to feel compassionate about, or to care
whether or not Viktor and she connect. We want Viktor to be happy, having such
hapless luck foisted upon him, but she is only a means to that end.
Frank
Dixon, as played by Stanley Tucci, has a unique job as a foil to Viktor. As security
chief, he's the one who oversees the airport's efficiency, mindful of the details
that keep things both secure and peaceful. Viktor's presence is not welcome, but
Frank has no legal options but to let him stay. We can't be sure if Frank wants
to help Viktor or not, as he flops indecisively in his efforts to oust Viktor
from the airport. Although Tucci could've played Frank better, his lines needed
more work. His character came across as underutilized by the scriptwriters.
Kumar
Pallana plays Gupta Rajan, a janitor who cantankerously protects his job. When
Viktor loses something in the garbage and tries to retrieve it, Gupta snorts,
"Do you have an appointment?" Gupta is on the run from the Indian police
and suspects everyone as being from the CIA. Pallana is funny with and without
lines. His insidious smile as travelers trip and slide on a wet floor is as good
as any John Belushi eyebrow lift.
The
movie is an appropriate Father's Day film, as Viktor's undaunted devotion to his
father's dream is touching. Recognizing the subcultures and society of the unseen
airport support staff is well-done when stereotypes aren't in force. In a post-9/11
era, and the rigid needs of airport security, the movie highlight the confounding
struggle innocent immigrants and travelers must now endure in order to walk from
no-man's land to the land of the free.
I
fully recommend "The Terminal." It has great DVD appeal, but seeing
it on the big screen brings nothing special when compared to its competition of
"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" and "Shrek 2."
However, when it lacks in special effects, it swells in thoughtful, timely humor
and drama. Send the kids into see "Harry," and hop into "The Terminal."
It is no "Schindler's List," "Saving Private Ryan" or "Philadelphia
Story," it is still a movie that will leave feeling good but not stupid.
Anthony
Trendl
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