Up In The Air

George Clooney's latest film has been getting awards all over the shop. But does it live up to the hype?
Once I finished watching this film, I was slightly confused. Not by the story - it makes sense, but by what I had actually watched. It seems like it should be a rom-com - but it's not, it looks slightly 'alt-indie' - but it's not, instead it's a film about ... love? I think? Relationships?
Clooney essentially plays the part of his media persona. He's a charming man who refuses to settle down with a lady, or at all, and essentially the film is about him reaching out to others. His job is to fire people, a job that requires a certain lack of sympathy, but it doesn't really spill into his personal life. He's quite a warm, gentle guy - so all his motivational talk about life being better off by yourself seems slightly unlikely. Especially since he falls for a woman of a similar nature while he looks after a young aspiring work colleague - essentially the reason why he changes.
Farmiga as the love interest works well but it seems like she's aged since I saw her last (which was "Orphan" last year) and she does her bit well but essentially, there's not much to her character. Anna Kendrick does well as the young, naive but lovable suit but there's nothing particuarly amazing about her character. McBride and Bateman are completely wasted in their tiny roles and it just felt a bit like it was some kind of mutant of an indie comedy trying to be mainstream. The directing was actually impressive, Reitman can find interesting angles in quite mundane environments but the real let-down is Clooney's character. Though he's somewhat interesting, he doesn't really learn anything by the end and I don't really feel sorry for him. Instead I kept thinking 'seems like a good life' - he doesn't want a partner and really, I still think he won't ever need one.
Is this Oscar worthy? Not really. It's alright and worth a watch, it was an enjoyable couple of hours, but it was mainly to watch Clooney do his thing - which is to be watchable.
Rating: 7/10