Life in Flight

19 January 2012. Not since Closer (2004) has a movie presented the dynamics of human relationships. With Life in Flight, it is both more simple and less intensely dramatic and polished, yet at the same time it is more subtle and in some ways more authentic in its depiction and resonating of real life though it comes off with less energy and compelling appeal. It's depiction and presentation style is more in line with Lars and the Real Girl (2007) though addressing different familial subject matter. In some ways there's a bit of the self-reflective element of Anne Hathaway's character as found in The Devil Wears Prada (2006) and the existential dilemma as found in Sliding Doors (1998) which in that movie's case was even more imaginatively done as more captivating. Nor does Life in Flight have the sharpness and singular dramatic crisp bite of American Beauty (2000) nor Shopgirl (2005). Nevertheless, Life in Flight has a substantive quality pertinent to contemporary life and provokes valuable reflection on living in today's world.