Sully (2016)

Director: Clint Eastwood

Screenplay: Todd Komarnicki (based on the book by Sullenberger and Jeffrey Zaslow)

Cast: Tom Hanks, Aaron Eckhart

Music: Christian Jacob, The Tierney Sutton Band

Time: 95 minutes

Bottom-line: Hanks and Eastwood in full form, in an otherwise average film!

Tom Hanks could well be on the Oscar list this year as well, with his performance as the titular character, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger. Aaron Eckhart, Laura Linney and Anna Gunn play the supporting roles in this biographical drama, based on the true incident that took place on January 15, 2009.

Captain Sully (Hanks) and First Officer Jeffrey Skiles (Eckhart) board an Airbus A320 from La Guardia airport. Almost immediately after the take-off, at an altitude of 2800 feet, a flock of geese strike the plane, disabling both engines. With the altitude being too low and time being insufficient to go back to La Guardia, Sully decides to land the plane in the Hudson river. He does so, and by some miracle, all passengers survive. While the public hail him as a hero, the NTSB criticise him of having deliberately put the lives at risk, arguing that he would have enough time to land at the runway. Sully also suffers from trauma following the incident. Will the glorious forty-year career end because of the one “risk” Sully took?

 

Hanks as Sully (left) and Eckhart as Skiles 

Forty years I’ve been flying and now they judge me because of 208 seconds?!

The main theme of the film is whether what Sully did was the right thing. First, we see the aftermath of the incident – the trauma, the case against Sully and the TV interviews showing Sully being regarded a public hero, then we actually flash backward to January 15, and see the incident from Sully’s point of view: from take-off, to the landing, till the official confirmation arrives that everyone survived. It’s not a full biopic – rather a documentary type film based on this one incident. There’s no exciting action; mostly it is just people talking.

Tom Hanks looks so different in Sully, with his snow-white hair and moustache. His acting though, is still impeccable. This is a guy who can play any role you give him. The authority, confidence and style with which he executes the captain’s role is amazing. Eckhart and the others have very little to do, comparatively. Hanks’ acting is what you should see the film for, in my view. Eastwood’s direction is quite good given the story, but I found it a tad boring at times. The emphasis shifts irregularly, between the case against Sully and his personal trauma/family.

I would never have imagined this one incident being the source of a 95-minute film, but only directors like Eastwood can accomplish that. Watch the film for Tom Hanks’ scintillating performance; the rest of the film will just blend around that!

My Rating: 3/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 83%