The Terminal- A Heartwarming Touch Of Humanity
The Terminal is a 2004 comedy drama movie directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Hanks in the lead role.
The movie tells the story of a man named Victor Navorski who arrives at JFK Airport from a politically unstable country. Due to the collapse of his Government, his papers are no longer valid in the airport, and he is forced to stay in the airport temporarily till the war cools down. It is loosely based on a real-life incident where an Iranian refuge was denied entry into England because his passport and United Nations refugee certificate had been stolen.
This is a simple, feel-good and heartwarming film directed expertly by the master himself-Steven Spielberg. Right from the start of the movie we are drawn towards the character of Victor (Tom Hanks). He barely knows any English as he is from an Eastern European nation named Krakozhia. He has a really funny accent in which he speaks which is quite hilarious to watch. We instantly fall in love with this character and the majority of that credit should go to Tom Hanks. He is a master of his craft and quite frankly you cannot imagine anyone else essaying the role of Victor other than Hanks.
As Victor is stranded at JFK Airport he starts living in the terminal. We see him carrying out his daily chores like sleeping, bathing, eating, reading etc. A public place like an airport does not stop him from living his life the way he wants to. Along the way, he starts making new friends like the catering car driver Enrique(Diego Luna), airport janitor Gupta Rajan(Kumar Pallana) etc. He also occasionally meets a flight attendant named Amelia Warren(Catherine Zeta-Jones). Victor starts having feelings for Amelia and he decides to take her out to dinner. But as Victor is penniless, he starts earning money by working as a construction worker at the airport.
However, the Customs and Border Protection Head Frank Dixon(Stanley Tucci) starts despising Victor. He becomes hell-bent on removing Victor from the airport. Frank’s hate for Victor grows even more after a specific incident in the movie. When Victor is asked to interpret for a desperate Russian man with undocumented drugs for his sick father, Victor claims those drugs as “medicine for the goat” which prevents the authorities from taking any action against the Russian man.
After this incident, Frank starts keeping an eye on Victor as Victor keeps on working as a construction worker at the airport. Victor, with his joyful nature, builds a strong friendship with everyone working at the airport. In a short period of time, he becomes a part of the airport family. Further, in the movie, we also get to know the reason behind Victor’s visit to the United States. In a very poignant scene, he tells Amelia that he came to the United States to complete a task undertaken by his father before his death. So, the rest of the movie depicts how Victor overcomes the odds in front of him and how with the help of his friends complete his father’s unfinished task.
As the title of the movie suggests, almost the entire film takes place inside the terminal. Although the movie has a contrived environment, it is thoroughly entertaining thanks to an engaging story and layered characters. The writers are successful in crafting a sweet and touching story filled with memorable supporting characters. The performances of everyone involved are outstanding. The second half of the movie gets a bit emotional and we as the audience can feel it because we feel connected with the characters.
Another important element of the movie is the music. The music by John Williams, who has collaborated with Steven Spielberg on a number of films is at once soothing and refreshing and it goes perfectly with the mood of the film.
With movies like Saving Pvt. Ryan, Catch me if you can and Bridge of Spies, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg have established themselves as one of the best actor-director pairs working in Hollywood. The Terminal may be one of their most underrated collaborations, mainly because it does not have the usual action, adventure elements that we are used to seeing in a Spielberg film. With this film, Spielberg proves his range as a director who can also make feel-good, heartwarming films.
The Terminal is also the only film in their collaboration to not receive a single Academy Award nomination. But sometimes, it’s not the awards or the box office numbers that decide the quality of a movie, it is the sheer compassion and heart that the movie possesses. This heartwarming movie will not disappoint you and will make you feel good about yourself!
