Le Terminal

Tom Hanks seems to be good at the "stuck" role. First he was stuck on an island in "Castaway", now he is stuck in an airport in "The Terminal". He plays Viktor Navorski and he is in America from his Eastern European home, but since there is turmoil in his land, he can't get permission to step foot onto American soil.

In a movie such as this one, you are greatly relying on the actor to carry it. This is a movie with no action, no real romance, no special effects, and no scene changes. Tom Hanks does an excellent job as the broken English speaking European. There are a few engaging incidents throughout the movie while the main story prods along: that being Viktor trying to get permission to walk outside the airport. There are a few other interesting characters, and there is even a bit of anticipation as you hold on to find out exactly why Viktor is in America. I liked the movie. I thought Tom was wonderful and I thought the character combination was choice.

Some movies just fascinate us with its cuteness..and here comes "The Terminal". It tells the story of a foreigner who gets stuck in an Airport in the United States and the protagonist's efforts to adapt to this horrible situation forms the rest of the story. Tom Hanks at his very best in this comedy feel-good entertainer. The movie shows us love and innocence could still do wonders in this difficult world. I bet, you will watch this movie again and again.

'A good movie makes us forget that we are sitting inside a theatre'

Sometimes life corners you. You are to face every single move life coins in for you. It mostly presents you failures – but how well do you manage the situations? How well you vindicate the problems away?

Movie takes off with the busy scene of immigration officers starting their duties on a workday. Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci) is on the duty – and to his surprise he gets promoted to the Field Officer command. Viktor Novorski (Tom Hanks) arrives at JFK from his country Krakozhia that gets devastated due a country coop. His passport gets cancelled when he arrives at JFK closing all gates to the New York City. Dixon determines him 'Unacceptable' because he is now a citizen of nowhere. With no answers about his clearance to the city, he settles down at the Visitor Transit lounge temporarily. What happens to him? What problems he faces? Why visit NYC? These questions surround our mind as we go much deeper past the first quarter.

We come to know about Viktor coming down to NYC just to make his dad's dreams alive. How he wins it – is through his happy-go-lucky friends Joe, Cruz, Thurman and Gupta.

Steven Spielberg answers all the questions in your mind. He prefers to show you the answers in the form of Comedy, Humanity, Romance and Authority. The movie makes you sit on the edge of your chairs, and never lets you down – Never even on a single frame. Based on an real life event – the 17 year stay of Mehran Karimi Nasseri in T1 of Charles De Gulle International Airport, France, the story pays a tribute to the troubles he faced.

Viktor Novorski speaks with his actions. His comical scenes make you laugh your heart out. He charms creativity and kindness. He weaves magic and sometimes even tears from your eyes. Frank Dixon on the other hand is the commanding boss. He takes on Viktor with his strict rules, bends him and tests his patience. The romantic half of Viktor is by Amelia Warren (Catherine Zeta Jones). She although appearing not so much in front of the camera – does justice to her role. Cruz (Diego Luna) helps Viktor by providing him food, while Viktor helps him to unite with an immigration officer Torres (Zoe Saldana). Viktor having no job at T1, having lost his food coupons decides to cut through his problems by not looking at the negative side, but the positive way. He works at the Terminal, eats there and sleeps there. He turns an uninhabited gate to his house. He finds innovative ways to earn – picking up loose trolleys, promoting shopping and carpentry. Finally he wins the hearts of everyone at the terminal and makes his dad's dream come true – stepping into NYC and getting the autograph from Benny Golson.

The film teaches us many things. Love, Friendship, Sacrifice, Patience, Problem Solving and Elasticity – are some of them. Released on June 18th 2004, the film runs for 128 minutes. Editing and Cinematography is crisp – and the art director amazes us with rebuilding a real life set of the Terminal.

Verdict – Make a trip to this 'Terminal'. You'll never regret!

Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks) has just arrived from Krakozhia in JFK Airport, when there is a coup in his small eastern country, with the revolutionary forces taking the government by force. The USA does not recognize the new government and the validity of his VISA and passport are canceled. Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci), the bureaucratic administrator of the airport, who rules by the book and does not show any compassion for people, leaves Viktor, who does not speak English, in the international lounge of the airport with a problem without solution. While patiently living in Gate 67 for a long period, Viktor survives, learns English by himself, makes new friends among the employees of the airport and falls in love for Amelia Warren (Catherine Zeta-Jones). "The Terminal" is a delightful and uncommon fable about a patient man who is trapped by the bureaucracy in the international lounge of JFK. I heard that an equivalent event would have happened indeed in Paris, but there is no reference on the DVD, and the writer takes the credits for the idea of this theme. Anyway, Steven Spielberg is really magic, and was able to make a delightful movie with such a weird storyline. Tom Hanks is excellent as usual and the beauty of Catherine Zeta-Jones is still very impressive. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "O Terminal" ("The Terminal")

An Eastern European (Tom Hanks) from a fictional country literally gets stuck at JFK Airport in New York after his landing coincides with the point at which a war causes his nation to no longer exist. Thus his paperwork and passport are no good. Hanks is in the U.S. for a mysterious reason and that reason becomes the hook in this wonderful picture. While stuck, Hanks sees more of America than he could have ever imagined. However he constantly has trouble with airport supervisor Stanley Tucci (in a perfect role). Runway worker Diego Luna makes a deal with Hanks so he can learn about passport officer Zoe Saldana (a woman who Luna has loved from afar) via Hanks' attempts to have his passport accepted. Also Hanks meets an elderly Indian janitor (Kumar Pallana) who has been in the states for decades, but the reason he is there also becomes a key point. While all this goes on, Hanks falls in love with 30-something flight attendant Catherine Zeta-Jones (perfectly illuminating and beautiful as usual). Zeta-Jones is sad and disillusioned with men (Michael Nouri of "Flashdance" in particular) and past relationships that have failed for one reason or another. Director Steven Spielberg has never really been known for romantic pictures ("Always" in 1989 is an exception), but he proves that he can definitely handle a production like this. The cast is excellent with Hanks making all those around him better. This story was co-written by Andrew Niccol (even though he strangely did not pen the final script), an under-rated screenwriter who struck gold in 1998 with "The Truman Show". Many of the good things from that script are also presented here in diverse and creative ways. By the way, the art direction/set decoration is amazing as everything within the titled location was built from scratch in a studio. Spielberg was not allowed to film any airports due to obvious security reasons. From top to bottom, "The Terminal" flies high. 4.5 out of 5 stars.