'Up in the Air'
(Dale Robinette / Paramount Pictures)
This evocative blend of mood, material and actors, with a far more confident Jason Reitman in the director's chair, made for an extremely satisfying flight of fancy in which emotion and insight, comedy and drama were always in balance. Excellent performances all around, but George Clooney (above with costar Vera Farmiga) is at his best as a traveling corporate downsizing whiz, which means, sadly, the timing couldn't be much better either.
By Times Film Critic Betsy Sharkey
