Uncertain Landing

Metro-090916-TrailerReview

‘SULLY’ TRAILER REVIEW BY METRO CREW

Everyone knows about the miraculous U.S. Airways emergency landing in the Hudson River in 2009 made by pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger. All 155 passengers and crew members survived, and Sullenberger was proclaimed a hero. But Sully, directed by Clint Eastwood, tells the story of what happened after all that — when Sullenberger faced an investigation into his actions during the incident and how he was affected by all the controversy and attention. While we agree that the story itself is interesting, we’re not sure how it’ll land as a full-length feature film.

Sully opens in wide release Sept. 9.

NICOLE: I am glad that they chose to focus on the aftermath of the landing because I think that is really where the drama lies, not just how other people reacted, but how he dealt with his choice. The crash itself is really important to the storyline, but from what I understand, the actual incident did not last that long (208 seconds).

PAIGE: Why is this a movie?

More importantly, why is this a Clint Eastwood movie? That seems a little random, to say the least. I didn’t even know there was anything controversial about this whole incident. I just read the whole Wikipedia entry about it, and it all seems pretty laudatory. I thought we had all agreed that Sully did a great job not letting anyone die and landing the plane under very extreme circumstances.

JAIMIE: I feel like it’s a story that didn’t necessarily need to be turned into a film. Do we need to know about his history as a pilot and that the fame it gave him was stressful? I feel like it’s enough to know that the dude successfully landed the plane and prevented anyone onboard from dying.

CHRISTINA: I don’t know why people seem to have been giving him crap — like that one person suggesting he could have made it back to the airport. He landed safely and everyone lived. Win.

NICOLE: I think of him in terms of spoof material. Super Sully was a side character in an American Dad episode (season seven, episode eight for those who are interested) where the cast beats down his status as hero: “Mr. Sullenberger, I admire what you’re doing with the whole hero thing. You know how to do it right. No, really, you are milking the hell out of it.”

JAIMIE: But also my distaste from this movie might also stem from my phobia of flying. I don’t need reminders that sh!% like this happens. No, thanks.

PAIGE: This film most importantly seems to serve as a reminder that you should never travel with Tom Hanks, because he is cursed to run into travel-related disaster wherever he goes, much as Matt Damon’s doomed to need billion-dollar rescue missions every time he goes somewhere.