Plot: What’s it about?
Tom Hanks has proved, time and again, that he’s one of the most versatile actors working today. Since the early 1990’s he’s taken more challenging roles as opposed to his younger days when he was making movies like “Bachelor Party”, “Splash” and “The Man with one Red Shoe”. I don’t want to take anything away from those movies as they’re perfectly enjoyable, but seeing Hanks in “Cast Away” or “Saving Private Ryan” was a much more enjoyable experience for me. Hanks and Director Steven Spielberg worked together in the aforementioned “Saving Private Ryan”, a movie which was cheated out of Best Picture by “Shakespeare in Love” (again, a great movie – but not the Best Picture of the year). Hanks and Spielberg also collaborated in the highly acclaimed HBO mini-series “Band of Brothers”, which is so good words can hardly describe it. Their latest effort is “The Terminal”, in which Hanks plays Viktor Navorski, a man literally without a country. Like the breezy “Catch Me if you Can” a couple years back, “The Terminal” doesn’t take itself too seriously. It received mixed reviews, but I found it genuinely entertaining. About the only thing that could be said about Hanks and Spielberg that isn’t flattering is that both of them tend to over-sentimentalize in their respective roles.
The story was loosely based on a man who spent 14 years in Charles DeGaulle airport (Paris), when he got caught up in a loophole that wouldn’t allow him to leave the airport. Hanks’ Viktor Navorski has landed at JFK airport in New York and during the course of his flight; his country has had a military coup. His passport is invalid and until the dust settles, JFK is his new home. He speaks little English and accepts the circumstances with a nod of the head and a smile. Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci) is the head of Immigration Security and next in line for the top spot. Navorski is a thorn in his side and Dixon wants him gone so that he can go about his business. But Viktor won’t leave and his amiable nature has him making friends throughout the International lounge in no time at all. Three key figures emerge as allies of Viktor: Mulroy (Chi McBride), Gupta (Kumar Pallana) and Enrique (Diego Luna). Viktor has taken refuge in an area of the airport (Gate 67 to be exact) that’s under construction. All of this leads up to his meeting with Amelia Warren (Cathernie Zeta-Jones), a flight attendant who has been hurt by men so many times, she’s lost count. Amelia is so skeptical of the opposite sex that she even encourages the man she’s having an affair with to seek counseling. Through circumstance alone, she bumps into Viktor several times thinking that each one is a coincidence. This is where the movie could turn sappy and predictable, but instead it veers off that course. Viktor hasn’t lost focus of trying to get out into New York City, but each and every day his form is stamped with the red instead of the green. He’s liked and respected by the employees of the terminal, which culminates when he helps a man get medicine to his sick father. Dixon tries every trick in the book to get rid of him, but to no avail.
I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed “The Terminal”. It seemed very genuine and the performances don’t disappoint. Hanks brings such a charisma to his character, we forget that he has a language barrier to break through. Sometimes all it takes is a look and we know what he’s thinking. Catherine Zeta-Jones is a good counterpart to Hanks and though she was relegated to a supporting role here (who isn’t with Hanks in a movie), she pulled it off. Of the reviews I’ve read, the major complaint seems to be the pacing of the movie and that it jumps from place to place. I take movies with a grain of salt and feel that the characters were adequately developed (though I have to admit I really didn’t understand the whole “Trekkie marriage to a baggage handler” sub plot). We move along with Viktor and wonder how long and when, if ever, he’ll finally return home or be allowed to enter New York. For every Spielberg movie like “The Terminal” there’s one like “Minority Report” a movie I liked but prefer the latter. This will undoubtedly find more life on DVD than it did in theaters, and while not a flop – I think it could and should have done better. But be your own judge, as for me – I liked it.
Video: How does it look?
Spielberg returned to scope (2.35:1) with “Minority Report” and he’s right back at shooting movies in 1.85:1. The image is very sharp, clean and clear throughout. Most all of the movie takes place inside “the terminal” which is very colorful (I lost count of the product placements, but suffice it to say I have an undesirable need to go to Borders). Flesh tones are warm and natural as well. The level of detail is very good as well and I’m hard-pressed to find much wrong with the way this looks on DVD. While this isn’t a perfect “Reference Quality” transfer, it’s not far from it. A full-frame version is sold separately.
Audio: How does it sound?
The audio in “The Terminal” is, for the most part, dialogue-driven. There are some surround effects from time to time, but nothing that really stood out as being terribly dynamic. Being a Dreamworks disc, we know that a DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 track will be included and, low and behold, they are. Both of these tracks sound good and I did notice a little more depth on the DTS track (as per usual). Dialogue seemed clean and natural. While a majority of the sound takes place in the front stage, the surrounds kick in a few times and at just the right moments. Overall this is a good, robust soundtrack that shouldn’t disappoint.
Supplements: What are the extras?
There is a three disc version of “The Terminal” out there, but this one is just the movie only (not even a trailer). The three disc features a second disc with all of the bonus materials and the original soundtrack is included as well. So if you’re hankering for supplements, they do exist – just not on this disc.
