Flight: A Turbulent Journey

Can an alcoholic also be a hero? That is the question posed by Flight. The movie portrays a man who performs a miraculous feat and saves many lives, but discovers that his dependence on alcohol and drugs can no longer be ignored.

Denzel Washington plays Captain William "Whip" Whitaker, an airline pilot who we first meet in a hotel room where he is waking up from a boozy night with a flight attendant. He has to fly a plane to Atlanta that morning so he takes some cocaine to battle his hangover. A few hours later he's in the cockpit, with nary an objection from the cabin crew or his co-pilot who clearly know the captain has been drinking. There's a scary sequence involving some turbulence, but the seasoned Whitaker guides the plane through the clouds and proves his piloting mettle. He mixes himself a screwdriver with some vodka in the galley and proceeds to take a nap. But the flight is poised to endure much more than a short bout of turbulence. 

Prior to the final descent, something goes terribly wrong and the plane launches into a steep dive. As everyone panics around him, Whip is eerily calm, runs through various options, and comes up with an astonishing solution. The only way to take the plane out of its dive is to turn it upside down, which he does until he finds an open field where he can land the plane. This is an absolutely harrowing and brilliantly shot cinematic sequence that is not recommended for anyone with a fear of flying. But instead of a plane crash where everyone dies, we get a plane crash with a mere six casualties. In the post-crash investigation, the airline puts other pilots in a flight simulator, and not a single person can replicate Whip's actions to land the plane safely. Captain Whitaker is heralded as a man who achieved the impossible.

Unfortunately, the post-crash investigation also involves routine medical tests, and they detect the cocaine and alcohol in Whip's system. While the press is busy fawning over the heroic Captain Whitaker, Whip is vigorously denying the medical evidence and trying to avoid manslaughter charges with the help of the attorney appointed by the pilots union, Hugh Lang (Don Cheadle). Despite the grave situation, Whip is incapable of admitting he has a problem, and after a short stint of quitting cold turkey, he is hitting the booze as hard as ever and calling up his friend Harling Mays (John Goodman) to supply him with various uppers and downers to cope with the unfolding events.

Flight is a compelling drama, telling the age-old tale of someone in the downward spiral of addiction. Denzel Washington delivers a compelling performance as a man who is struggling to acknowledge what he has become, and who refuses to see what is evident to everyone around him. His main defense seems to be: I'm a hero, doesn't that excuse everything? And the movie leaves you guessing until the very end as to whether or not he will get away with it.