SULLY (2016, USA, 96m, 12) ***½
Biography, Drama
dist. Warner Bros.; pr co. Warner Bros. Pictures / Village Roadshow / Malpaso / Flashlight Films; d. Clint Eastwood; w. Todd Komarnicki (adapted from the book by Chelsey Sullenberg and Jeffrey Zaslow); pr. Clint Eastwood, Frank Marshall, Tim Moore, Allyn Stewart; ph. Tom Stern (Colour | 2.39:1); m. Christian Jacob, Tierney Sutton Band; ed. Blu Murray; pd. James J. Murakami; ad. Kevin Ishioka.
cast: Tom Hanks (Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger), Aaron Eckhart (Jeff Skiles), Valerie Mahaffey (Diane Higgins), Delphi Harrington (Lucille Palmer), Mike O’Malley (Charles Porter), Jamey Sheridan (Ben Edwards), Anna Gunn (Elizabeth Davis), Holt McCallany (Mike Cleary), Ahmed Lucan (Egyptian Driver), Laura Linney (Lorrie Sullenberger), Laura Lundy (Reporter #1 (as Laura Lundy Wheale)), Onira Tares (Reporter #2), Gary Weeks (Reporter #3), Katie Couric (Katie Couric), Jeff Kober (LT Cook), Blake Jones (Sully (16 Years Old)), Molly Bernard (Alison), Chris Bauer (Larry Rooney), Jane Gabbert (Sheila Dail), Ann Cusack (Donna Dent).
On Jan. 15, 2009, Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger (Hanks) tries to make an emergency landing in New York’s Hudson River after US Airways Flight 1549 strikes a flock of geese. Miraculously, all of the 155 passengers and crew survive the harrowing ordeal, and Sullenberger becomes a national hero in the eyes of the public and the media. Despite the accolades, the famed pilot faced an investigation that threatened to destroy his career and reputation. This is an efficiently made account of that investigation in which the airline looks to apportion blame to Sully. Hanks adds depth and dignity to his portrayal of the humble everyman hero, whilst Eastwood’s no-fuss direction ensures there is no Hollywood-isation of the story, but the film fails to fully get under the skin of the characters and feels a little superficial. For example, the scenes with a younger Sully flying prop planes and fighter jets do not develop the story, merely add biography that is superfluous. The scenes at the hearing also tend to lack dramatic tension and feel condensed. We are therefore left with a middling adaptation of this true-life event, given a significant shot of class from Hanks.
AAN: Best Achievement in Sound Editing (Alan Robert Murray, Bub Asman)
