Up in the Air

2009 George Clooney movie

Rating: Clooney/20 (Jen: 15/20)

Plot: George Clooney has George Clooneyed for a long time now. He's graying around the edges of his George Clooneyness, still managing to be George Clooney when situations call for a little George Clooney or, in some cases, George Clooney in George Clooneyesque proportions. But changes are sneaking up on George Clooney, threatening to send his George Clooney out of orbit and ultimately out-George-Clooneying any George Clooneytude that George Clooney can deliver. George Clooney.

George Clooney, the star of Up in the Air, plays a character I really shouldn't like or root for. He does a terrific job making that character somebody infectiously human and ultimately likable. There's great character development here, and there's some great chemistry with the performers to go along with it. I liked this movie better than Juno and maybe Thank You for Smoking, probably because neither of those has enough George Clooney. This has charm but seems a little formulaic to me even though the ending took me by surprise a little bit. I'm not sure why it did though, but it probably has something to do with George Clooney's involvement. I like how a lot of varying pieces in this all contribute to an overall something even though they never really come together completely.