Bingham wants to be a legend among air travelers. Just when he’s about to reach his millionth frequent flyer mile, he is told by his company that he’ll be grounded indefinitely as they implement a new system designed by Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick).

Bingham’s boss Craig Gregory (Jason Bateman) assigned him to show Keener the ropes so that she could incorporate it into the new system. This is where most of the funny moments of Up in the Air happened. It’s a hilarious look into three people’s strengths and weaknesses. This is also where the important message of the movie was conveyed.

Alex Goran (Vera Farmiga): I thought we signed up for the same thing… I thought our relationship was perfectly clear. You are an escape. You’re a break from our normal lives. You’re a parenthesis.

Vera Farmiga is a natural seductress. I found myself draw into her even though she’s not my type. She’s the opposite of Anna Kendrick’s character, who is a know-it-all and annoying at times. We all met a Natalie Keener once and wished we can “unmeet” somebody. Bingham showed his compassionate side when after resigning from the company he gave her a glowing letter of recommendation.

While Up is the Air is a good movie, I don’t get all the hype it got. The story is predictable and you’ll forget about it a couple of hours after watching it. It tried to reach out to the jobless by giving them hope in the end but it failed to show the sincerity of the companies that fired them in the first place. And am I the only one who thought that Bingham was condescending when he told a man that his being fired is his chance to be a chef. This after the man talked about his mortgage and his daughter’s medical needs.

Up in the Air is a good distraction from the real world but it’s nothing special. It has a satisfactory ending and would make you feel good. Clooney fans will definitely enjoy this one.

The movie is about a veteran investigative reporter, Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe), who tried and succeeded in uncovering the truth behind the suicide of the mistress of his friend, Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck). Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) is an internet blogger hired by McAffrey’s boss (Helen Mirren) and asked McAffrey to show her the ropes. As they dug deeper into the apparent suicide, they discover facts that led them to believe that it was murder instead.

State of Play has some political overtones and it made the movie more interesting. It also turned out that McAffrey is close not only with the congressman but also with his wife Anne (Robin Wright), who was his girlfriend during their college. But she got nothing to do with the murder so let’s forget about her for a while.

Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe): The newspaper article he types reads: Three Deaths Tied to Gulf War Army Associate New evidence links Rep. Stephen Collins with the suspect in the killings of three people, including Sonia baker, the congressman’s political researcher. When confronted by the Washington Globe with information tying him to suspect Robert Bingham, Collins admitted he had directed his former Army associate to follow Baker after learning that she was secretly on the payroll of military contractor PointCorp. Collins, the chairman of the committee investigating PointCorp’s government deals, said he authorized Bingham only “to observe” Baker. He said he never intended for her to be harmed. “He just did it,” Collins said of Bingham. “He seemed more upset about what she was doing than I was.” When police went to arrest Bingham at his Northern Virginia apartment last night, he was found dead, apparently of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. A rifle was next to his body. Investigators said they believe Bingham pushed Baker to her death under a Metro train earlier this week and later shot two witnesses, Deshaun Stagg and Vernon Sando, to silence them.

Russell Crowe is a guy I always love to hate but he did a pretty decent job in State of Play. Ben Affleck was perfect as a congressman with big political aspiration. Rachel McAdams held her ground against the two male leads. Jason Bateman played a pivotal role as a big shot PR guy that knew too much.

State of Play is one of the suspenseful thrillers I’ve seen in recent times. It provided all the right twists that made it unpredictable. With all the political scandals we read in the news these days, State of Play provides a very frightful scenario.

Hancock shows the somewhat human side of superheroes. It shows that they do have struggles to overcome. I don’t want to give away the story but Hancock had to face a demon of his past to be the best superhero in the future.

Charlize Theron was lovely in the film. She was perfect to play the role of Mary, wife of Hancock’s PR manager Ray (Jason Bateman). Will Smith’s presence plus Charlize’s charisma makes this movie one of my favorites this year. Jason Bateman did a good job playing third wheel to these superstars.

Although Hancock lacks a supervillain like most superhero movies, it didn’t diminish the entertainment factor of movie. Who needs a villain to support the Smith-Theron team up anyway?

Hancock (Will Smith): Good job!

Good job indeed!

*Spoiler*
Mary is really Hancock’s wife but they can’t be together because bad things happen when they do. Near the end, Hancock realizes this and had to go away so that Mary would not die.