Reitman flies high

By Sebastian Fryer

Western Herald

Although he’s only on his third feature film, Jason Reitman is quickly becoming one of the biggest names in Hollywood.

Known for his debut, “Juno,” which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, and “Thank You for Smoking,” Reitman is now heading up a new project entitled “Up in the Air.”

“Up in the Air” stars George Clooney as Ryan Bingham, a “career transition counselor,” whose job has him flying across the nation firing people from their jobs.

As Bingham makes his way across the country, he is becoming closer to his goal of becoming a member of a frequent flyer club.

The film is based on a 2001 book by Walter Kirn, who also wrote “Thumbsucker,” which was adapted into the 2005 film of the same name.

Like his two prior films, Reitman is straddling the line between comedy and drama.

“I think comedy and drama are techniques, not genres,” Reitman said in a conference call, “I don’t think I limit myself to one or the other.”

Reitman also said that the global economic crisis affected the filming of “Up in the Air.”

“Most notably, I cast real people as the people who lose their jobs in this movie,” Reitman said.

“So when you see someone get fired in this movie, except for a few actors that you’re going to recognize, like Zack Galifianakis and J.K. Simmons, these are real people in St. Louis and Detroit who actually just lost their jobs in real life.”

The film, which is in limited release, has already been garnering good reviews from critics.

“In its funny, rueful way, ‘Up in the Air’ touches contemporary American notes few Hollywood movies acknowledge,” said David Ansen of Newsweek in a review.

Clooney, who received the National Review Board Award and Satellite Award for his performance, is also earning praise for his work in the film.

“It’s hard to think of an actor who’s better at projecting the professional smoothness that’s essential to make this character palatable, but Clooney turns out to be willing to take that persona further,” said Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times.

However, Stephanie Zacharek of Salon.com said, “The picture is brushed with a fine glaze of slickness, a product sealed in a blister pack. It’s like airplane air – it has a packaged freshness that isn’t really fresh at all.”

Although the film hasn’t seen a wide release yet, Reitman is already eyeing his next project.

Reitman has begun working on a script based on the 2009 novel “Labor Day” by Joyce Maynard.  The adaptation is scheduled to be released in 2011.

“Up in the Air” is currently in limited release and will be extended to a wider release on Dec. 25.

Short URL: http://www.westernherald.com/?p=13094

Posted by heraldstaff on Dec 9 2009. Filed under A & E, Weekend Scene. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

http://HeraldStaff