Up in the Air (2009 film)

Reitman promoted Up in the Air with personal appearances at film festivals, starting with Telluride on September 5, 2009. Following a Los Angeles premiere at the Mann Village Theater in November, Paramount Pictures gave Up in the Air a wide release on December 23, 2009.


Up in the Air was met with critical acclaim, for Reitman's screenplay and direction, and the performances by Clooney, Farmiga, and Kendrick. It was also a box office success, grossing $166 million worldwide against a $25 million budget. The film received several accolades, including six nominations each at the Oscars and the Golden Globes, winning Best Screenplay at the latter. A number of critics and publications included Up in the Air on their lists of the best films of 2009.

Plot[edit]

Ryan Bingham works for an American human resources consultancy firm specializing in employment-termination assistance. His work constantly takes him around the country, conducting company layoffs on behalf of employers. Ryan also gives motivational speeches, using the analogy, "What's in Your Backpack?" to extol living free of burdensome relationships and material possessions. A frequent flyer, Ryan aspires to earn ten million frequent flyer miles with American Airlines. While traveling, Ryan meets a woman named Alex, a professional who also flies frequently. They begin a casual relationship, meeting up in various cities as their respective schedules allow.


Ryan is recalled to his company's offices in Omaha, Nebraska. Natalie Keener, a young, ambitious new hire, promotes cutting costs by conducting layoffs via video-conferencing. Ryan raises concerns that the new system is impersonal and undignified, and argues that Natalie lacks understanding about the firing process and how to handle emotionally vulnerable people. Ryan's boss, Craig Gregory, has Natalie accompany a reluctant Ryan on his next round of terminations to observe the process.


Ryan tutors Natalie on traveling more efficiently using smaller luggage and moving quickly through airport security. As they travel together, Natalie challenges Ryan's philosophies on life, particularly regarding relationships and love, but Ryan defends his lifestyle. During the trip, Natalie's boyfriend unceremoniously dumps her by text message. Ryan and Alex comfort the shattered Natalie. On a video termination test run, Ryan's earlier concerns prove valid; when one laid-off person breaks down on camera, Natalie is unable to properly console him and another employee threatens suicide.


Natalie castigates Ryan for his inability to commit to Alex, despite their obvious compatibility; Ryan dismisses her criticisms and chastises her for lacking empathy and never appreciating her surroundings. Before returning home, Ryan, taking Alex along, heads to Wisconsin for his sister Julie's wedding. He has a strained reunion with his semi-estranged family who resent his absence. When Jim, the groom, gets cold feet just prior to the ceremony, Ryan's older sister, Kara, asks Ryan to intervene. Although counter to his personal philosophy, Ryan uses his motivational skills to persuade Jim to proceed with the wedding.


Ryan begins questioning his lifestyle and philosophies, and doubts what he lectures others about. In Las Vegas for a prestigious speaking engagement, Ryan abruptly walks offstage mid-presentation and impulsively flies to Chicago to see Alex. Arriving at her front door, he is stunned to discover that she is married and has children. She later phones, chastising him for nearly wrecking her marriage, and says her family is her real life; he is merely an escape.


On Ryan's flight home, the crew announces that he has just crossed the ten million mile mark. American Airlines' chief pilot is aboard to personally congratulate Ryan and notes he is the youngest person to achieve the milestone. When asked where he is from, Ryan, realizing he has no real home, simply says, "here." Back in Omaha, Ryan transfers a million frequent flyer miles to Julie and Jim so they can have a honeymoon. Craig informs Ryan that a laid-off employee has committed suicide (the same one who had threatened to do so earlier). Natalie, upset over the news, quits via text message. The remote-layoff program is stopped, and Ryan is sent back on the road.


Natalie applies to the same San Francisco company where she had previously declined a position, having followed her now ex-boyfriend to Omaha. Impressed by her qualifications and Ryan's glowing written recommendation, the interviewer hires her. The film concludes with Ryan at the airport, standing in front of a vast destination board, contemplating where he should travel next (something Natalie encouraged him to do earlier). Looking up, he lets go of his luggage.