Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger (Tom Hanks, ‘Forrest Gump’) piloted a plane on Thursday 15th January 2009 that would change his life forever. The flight taking off from La Guardia airport, New York began just like 1000’s of other flights during his long career. However, during ascent the plane flew through a flock of birds destroying both engines. At this point if you don’t want to know what happened stop reading now; but to be honest it was a major news story, and also there is a pretty big clue in the title.
Clint Eastwood is quite possibly my favourite director with movies such as ‘Jersey Boys’, ‘Million Dollar Baby’, ‘American Sniper’ and ‘Gran Torino’ under his watchful eye. When I heard his name connected to this project alongside Tom Hanks I had high hopes. Since its release the film seems to have received a lukewarm response, and now that I’ve seen it I have to say I’m confused as to why.
208 seconds the plane was in the air. That’s all. This had the potential of being the darkest day in New York since the 9/11 attacks of 2001. Because of the heroism shown by Sully and co-pilot Jeff Skiles (Aaron Eckhart, ‘Olympus has Fallen’), instead of a disaster, New York had a moment they could be extremely proud of.
It was always going to be difficult to make a feature length movie based on an event that took just 208 seconds. The way Eastwood managed to do this was by not only showing us the flight and forced water landing (not a crash), but also telling us what happened next. You’d think successfully landing the plane on the Hudson River, saving all 155 souls on board, would please everyone. However, what followed was an investigation into what happened and why he decided to land the plane in the water instead of heading back to an airport. What this provides is not only tense visuals of the flight, but also a fascinating boardroom drama and insight into the steps taken after such an event.
Some people have complained that you see the flight too many times. We are shown the flight a few times, but each time it’s shown from a different perspective. Seeing it from different perspectives I thought was a good way of gauging different reactions. Another complaint was that when the film went into the investigatory sections it became dull and boring. First of all I didn’t think there were as many investigation scenes as I was led to believe; and secondly I found those scenes really enjoyable. It allowed a great opportunity to see Sully’s character as a man as well as a pilot. If I were to criticize anything I’d say I wasn’t too keen on the flashbacks in Sully’s life.
They weren’t bad at all, but I’m not entirely sure they were necessary either. Also, at one point we get to know a few of the passengers a little better, which again I don’t think was necessary. Really this story was all about Sully and Skiles.
Hanks and Eckhart were terrific. Hanks, as always, brought a calmness and assuredness to a character who seems like a nice genuine guy who was just doing his job. Eckhart showed glimpses of humour that was a nice touch during what was an awkward situation. Both potentially worth award nominations, but I suspect they may end up on snub lists.
The Miracle on the Hudson is something I remember watching on the news, but I don’t think I appreciated at the time how amazing it actually was. When you see and hear what could have happened it’s terrifying. An uplifting drama that will have you on the edge of your seat and perhaps even slightly emotional with pride, Sully: Miracle on the Hudson is a fantastic representation of Chelsey Sullenberger – a true hero!
Movie URL: https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/363676-sully?language=en-US
Movie Critic: AAA
Movie Rating: 8/10