Director:
Steven Spielberg
Starring:
Tom Hanks……….Viktor Navorski
Catherine Zeta-Jones……….Amelia
Stanley Tucci……….Frank Dixon
Barry Shabaka Henley……….Ray Thurman
Chi McBride……….Mulroy
Diego Luna……….Enrique Cruz
Kumar Pallanatucci……….Gupta Rajan
Zoe Saldana……….INS agent
DreamWorks Pictures presents the film The Terminal. Written by Sacha Gervasi and Jeff Nathanson. Running time: 121 minutes. Rated PG-13 (for brief language and drug references).
The Terminal marks the third time director Steven Spielberg and actor Tom Hanks have teamed up on the big screen – Saving Private Ryan and Catch Me if You Can were their previous collaborations. Tom Hanks plays Viktor Navorski, a native of the make believe nation of Krakoshiza, who travels to New York to fulfill a promise. But there’s a small problem.
While Navorski’s plane was flying to New York his homeland underwent a military coup. Unbeknownst to him, the rebellion in essence acted as a no admittance clause into the United States for one Viktor Navorski. Because the coup occurred, the U.S. cannot recognize the governing body of Krakoshiza. His passport is no longer valid and Viktor Navorski becomes a man without a home.
Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci) is the white-collar overseer of security at JFK International. Dixon is good at his job; he has a knack for reading people; and he is quick to notice illegal immigrants coming through Customs. Dixon is so good that his soon to retire boss is planning to name him as his replacement. The job is his if he can get through the FBI inspection. Piece of cake. Dixon’s been doing this sort of thing for seventeen years. Nothing could possibly go wrong. That is until Navorski walked into his airport.
Tom Hanks is delightful as the Krakoshizan Viktor Navorski. At first we see him as a man who’s lost in translation when it comes to the English language. Add that to the fact that Dixon has regulated Viktor to stay inside the terminal – if Viktor leaves he could be declared as an illegal alien. The longer Viktor stays inside the international transit lounge the more he becomes accustomed to this new lifestyle. During his familiarization process, he assists some of the airport employees by becoming matchmaker, poker player, and construction worker, just to name a few.
An odd assortment of airport employees adds another dimension to the film – the best being Gupta (Kumar Pallanatucci), the janitor. Gupta is an Indian man whose daily enjoyment comes from watching people slip and slide on the floors he’s just mopped. The combination of different races and ethnicities inside the terminal represent a melting pot, a thriving community all its own.
“Do you ever feel like you’re just living in an airport?” One airline traveler asks Navorski this while they are both inside a public restroom shaving. All Viktor can do is stare at the traveler’s mirror reflection, razor still in hand. No words are uttered from his mouth. The image of Viktor’s face sums up his stay inside the terminal perfectly. It’s as if he’s in a prison without bars.
And what a prison it is.
The terminal is almost like another character in the film, so full of life. People, Barnes & Noble, Dean & Deluca, Payless Shoes, Hugo Boss. They’re all inside the lounge area. The most interesting aspect of the terminal is that it is just a set. Because of 9/11 Steven Spielberg and his crew had a difficult time shooting scenes inside existent airport terminals. Carpenters built this massive terminal near Palmdale, California. It has two working escalators, a real Burger King, and much, much more. Truly, an impressive feat.
The Terminal is unlike any film Steven Spielberg has directed. In the simplest terms this motion picture can be called a romantic comedy, but it doesn’t always play like one – the female protagonist Catherine Zeta-Jones is only in the film a short time. Maybe the phrase “human comedy” is a better characterization. The film is an intricate study of a man who falls through the cracks – leaving him to live in a transit lounge – and how he copes within his new environment.
Though audiences should expect a film like this from Spielberg. After all, he did initiate the summer blockbuster craze with Jaws; he’s made action-adventure pictures with a guy nicknamed Indiana and dinosaurs that run amuck. And, he’s no stranger to science-fiction filmmaking with the likes of Close Encounters and Minority Report. Now was the time for him to do a small, lighthearted film for a change of pace.
There are only two regrets about the film. The first, and most obvious, is the ending. Could it have taken another direction? You decide. It is one that audience members could ponder as they eat a slice of cherry pie. The other regret for this film was its summer release. The Terminal, in my opinion, is the type of film that would be totally bankable if released near Thanksgiving or Christmas. At least the DVD arrived just in time for the holidays.
THE VIDEO
The DVD’s video transfer is quite remarkable. The colors are very intense, but in a good way. You can definitely see the difference in color temperature at the beginning of The Terminal and at the end. The film’s theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 is presented in anamorphic widescreen.
THE AUDIO
There are no loud explosions or boisterous sound effects to speak of, but composer John Williams uses the five-point-one channels of audio nicely. As the film progresses, the composer’s score hits all the right notes, complementing Steven Spielberg’s direction. You can listen to the film in English DTS 5.1, Dolby 5.1 Surround, Dolby Stereo Sound, or French Dolby 5.1 Surround. You can also view the film with English, French, or Spanish subtitles.
SPECIAL FEATURES
All the extras you can expect to find for The Terminal is only available on the Three-Disc Limited Edition version. Both the Fullscreen and Widescreen versions are bare-bones releases.
There are three discs, but only two are supplementary. On Disc 1 is the Feature Film. Since director Steven Spielberg is notorious for not providing audio commentaries, we have the closest thing to one: a documentary.
The documentary is in six-parts and is accessible on Disc 2. Written, Directed, and Produced by Laurent Bouzereau, this documentary encompasses everything from the script and story to personal airport stories from the cast and crew. The six-parts are laid out like this:
BOOKING THE FLIGHT: The Script, The Story
WAITING FOR THE FLIGHT: Building the Terminal
BOARDING: The People of the Terminal
TAKE OFF: Making the Terminal
IN FLIGHT SERVICE: The Music of the Terminal
LANDING: Airport Stories
In the eight-minute “Booking the Flight: The Script, The Story” director Steven Spielberg and screenwriters Jeff Nathanson (Catch Me If You Can) and Sacha Gervasi discuss how the story for The Terminal originated. Anecdotes include Gervasi’s attempt at living inside an airport terminal for a few days. There’s also a story of a man who lived inside a terminal for eighteen months because he was afraid to tell his wife that he lost his job.
“Waiting for the Flight: Building the Terminal,” definitely the best feature of the six-parts, has production designer Alex McDowell explaining the research and construction that went into creating the massive transit lounge set for this Spielberg/Hanks collaboration. Mr. Spielberg provides his two cents telling why the set had to be made; there were problems shooting scenes at an airport in Montreal. Though this segment runs a little over twelve minutes, it could have gone fifteen or twenty more. It is fascinating to watch the process in how the set was constructed.
For “Boarding: The People of the Terminal” documentarian Bouzereau breaks it up into a three-part feature. You have the option to play “Tom Hanks is ‘Viktor'”; “Catherine Zeta-Jones is ‘Amelia'”; and “Viktor’s World” as a complete feature (31:52 in all) or individually. The first two sections discuss Tom and Catherine and their alter egos. Spielberg on Hanks: “This is the most improvising he’s done….This is the most inventive I’ve ever seen Tom.” For Catherine, Spielberg had nothing but lavish praise for her performance. Amelia is an emotional woman, very vulnerable. The last in this acting trilogy explores the supporting cast. Characters such as airport supervisor Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci), Enrique Cruz (Diego Luna), and Mulroy (Chi McBride) are included. While watching the “boarding” feature it felt like there was too much pandering going on. But the whole “pat on the back” routine is never excessive. I just wish the supporting cast had more screen time.
“Take Off: Making the Terminal” examines the tone of the film. In this feature the Director of Photography tells how the transit lounge set made for easy camera techniques. The set also made the actors more at ease and made their performances remarkable. Watching this feature you learn how ARC light passes for sunlight inside the terminal. Also, you will see a comparison of how the ambiance of the film starts cool (blue and green). When Viktor settles in the film has a warm feel to it. Costumes, visual effects, and editing are also emphasized.
Composer John Williams is the focus of “In Flight Service: The Music of the Terminal.” In this piece Williams demonstrates how his orchestra captures the Eastern-European tone in Viktor Navorski. Inside his studio he makes mention of the clarinet and how it is an instrument indigenous to poverty. Mr. Williams briefly discusses the love theme (for Viktor and Amelia) he composed for the film.
The last featurette in Bouzereau’s documentary is entitled “Landing: Airport Stories.” Like the title points out, members of the cast and crew recount airport stories. Some of their stories are humorous, others horrible.
One of the drawbacks for this six-part documentary is the exclusion of a “Play All” feature. It’s weird that they would have it for the “Boarding” featurette, but not the entire documentary. Nonetheless, the eighty-minute Laurent Bouzereau doc is fun, albeit a little pretentious.
Cast and Crew Filmographies, Production Notes, and a Photo Gallery round out the rest of the extras on Disc 2.
Moving on to Disc 3
The last disc of this limited edition set is the musical score to The Terminal. It has a nice European flair to it. John Williams, the maestro who gave us the chilling theme to Jaws and other memorable films, shows that he hasn’t lost a step. Fifty-seven minutes and 14 tracks later you can say you have seen (and heard) everything there is of this three-disc collection.
THE INSIDE PULSE
While not the box office smash many insiders were predicting it to be, The Terminal is still an enjoyable film. This “human comedy” is the perfect way to celebrate the holiday season with loved ones or a group of friends. If you are a die-hard Spielberg or Hanks fan, then by all means check out the three-disc limited edition. If you are unconvinced that Hanks can pull off an Eastern-European accent, rent the bare-bones edition and give it a spin.
