Sully (2016)
11:49 AM
The untold story behind the miracle on the Hudson.
🎄Blogmas: Day 8!🎄
Sully is directed by Clint Eastwood (American Sniper, Gran Torino) and stars Tom Hanks (The Da Vinci Code, Forrest Gump), Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight, I, Frankenstein), Laura Linney (The Truman Show, Mystic River) and Mike O'Malley (Glee, Concussion). "The story of Chesley Sullenberger, an American pilot who became a hero after landing his damaged plane on the Hudson River in order to save the flight's passengers and crew.". Clint Eastwood is coming off a real high with American Sniper - can Sully be just as good and just as powerful?
Sully, not a spin off to Monsters Inc (...obviously). This is a very solid film and I enjoyed watching it - it is a slight step down for Eastwood as American Sniper was much stronger but all-in-all, this is a very solid film that I would recommend. I actually think this is a rare film that the majority of people who go see it will take something away from it - the elderly, adults, teens - I think this is a suitable choice this holiday season if you want a family cinema outing. Tom Hanks gives a good performance that may earn him yet another Oscar nomination - dyeing his hair white wasn't for nothing! Overall, a very solid flick that is entertaining and sophisticated.
Tom Hanks rarely gives a bad performance (unless its a contracted or pay-cheque role) but I firmly believe he was fully committed to his role in Sully - he even changed his appearance😉. This film basically was the Tom Hanks show as he actually felt like the only fleshed out and important character - despite the film telling us that this was a group effort not an individuals. Hanks is great and that didn't surprise me. The supporting cast didn't really make an impression - the only thought I had was 'who is that guy and how do I know him?' and that was about Mike O'Malley who was in Glee - yes, I watched the first few seasons. It was strange to see O'Malley in such a different role and I have to admit, it did take me out of the film. Something about his appearance just wasn't right for the type of role he was playing. Laura Linney is good and makes the audience empathise with her character effectively. Aaron Eckhart still can't break into Hollywood properly - every film he is in, he is outshone by a better performance.
The story is another strong element about Sully - of course it is based on real events and I believe the film was pretty faithful to what actually happened and didn't sugarcoat too much - however, all of Sully's visions of crashing planes were definitely just to provide a speck of action in an otherwise very dialogue-heavy scene. I also thought the film didn't need to repeat the plane crash towards the end of the film - we already saw it earlier on, why not just do it once and give us all the details at the same time rather than virtually watching the same scene twice. I found this repetition quite annoying and I just wanted the film to end. Clint Eastwood does a really good job of portraying an individual that some would find controversial - most of Sully is about the debate about whether it was a heroic act or a poorly thought out act. This gets your mind going and does make you think whether this guy is as heroic as you might think at first glance. The story is well crafted so that you are routing for Sully and want him to prove it was his only option. The film is 90 minutes long (so actually quite short) but that does already have duplicate scenes in it, I am so pleased they cut it to this length because anything longer would have really damaged the pace and could have led to a much more negative mindset from me on the film. The Walk (120 minutes about a guy walking from one building to another) needs to take a leaf out of Sully's book - it was an event that happened quite quickly so it didn't mess around setting up relationships or other unnecessary things, it gets straight to the point of what audiences are here to see. I could have done with a little more development on the passengers on the plane as it felt like the film was rushing to develop them.
The visual effects were also quite strong - the visions Sully had of the planes crashing into buildings were solid but the film definitely impressed with the actual crash. Somehow, the film made you feel like you were actually on this plane with all the people and you actually felt scared for what was to come. The visuals were very impressive - this is a great example of a film that knows how to utilise CGI well - it doesn't shove it in your face and only uses it when necessary.
Sully is a pleasant and solid film. It isn't powerful like American Sniper but it still is effective at making you think twice about the protagonist and is consistent with the debate it starts. Tom Hanks is brilliant and outshines everyone else in this film - I actually think they could have got a slightly better supporting cast for this. The visuals are not too much and are just right. Not too overlong and well paced, this film doesn't have too many major flaws - other than virtually repeating the same scene. I liked Sully and it is undeniably a well made film, see it if it sounds up your street.
71
/100
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