Reitman’s Revival

Upon watching the movie “Up in the Air” it is easy to see that it is vastly different from the book it was scripted after. Director Jason Reitman changed a dry, aimless work of literature into a film with direction and purpose. In the book version of “Up in the Air”, Ryan Bingham is largely alone. He is isolated from his family, lacks any real friends and makes his home in various hotels and airport lounges. Despite the anxiety his family reserves for Ryan’s choice of lifestyle, Ryan of the book seems to be content with his way of life and does not seem to want for any human attachments, “You're awfully isolated the way you live” declares his sister, “Isolated? I'm surrounded”, argues Ryan (Kirn). Ryan’s greatest aspirations involve the prospect of a new job with a company called “Mythtech”, reaching one million frequent flyer miles, and publishing a business novel. Although, Ryan Bingham of the movie also makes his home in “Airworld” he seems to encompass more real human emotions. Throughout the movie, you get the idea that an ocean of feelings is lurking just beneath the cold, calculated surface of the Ryan that is depicted onscreen. Also, the movie version does not leave Ryan Bingham as isolated as the novel. Ryan is almost always accompanied by Alex, his reluctant love interest, or Natalie, an intelligent young woman who was designated to shadow Bingham in order to learn the ways of his company. Overall, the movie far exceeds the book in its ability to give Ryan human emotions and therefore making him a more dynamic character. The movie version makes you actually care about Ryan and therefore, makes you care about the movies messages of hope, and need for human connection. The movie is more successful at telling a compelling, timely tale.

There are a number of reasons why the novel was not as successful as the movie that was released in 2009. The book is slow and focuses primarily on an uncaring Ryan Bingham whose greatest aspiration is reaching one million miles. When the novel “Up in The Air” was published in 2001, pre-recession America cared less about a man who spends his time as a lay-off specialist. The economic landscape of this time was bright and the public did not have much sympathy for a man who spent his days flying around the country doing big corporations uncomfortable dirty work. Simply put, society had a hard time putting themselves in Ryan’s shoes, let alone the shoes of the unfortunate many he was sent to fire. The book could not relate to the prosperous time in which it had been published. Another blow to the books success was the main character itself. Ryan Bingham of the novel is hard to assimilate with, he is a man who wants nothing of human connection, but loves his life of anonymity that he spends in various airports and hotels, “All the things you probably hate about travelling -the recycled air, the artificial lighting, the digital juice dispensers, the cheap sushi- are warm reminders that I'm home.”(Kirn) Maybe if society knew what was in store for our country, starting with the events of September 11, and ultimately resulting in the economic downturn of the recession, it would have paid more attention to this novel.

Conversely, the movie “Up in The Air” was released in 2009. The movie’s driving force is Ryan Bingham’s fight to keep his position as an on the go, in person, career-transition specialist from being grounded by Natalie, who was newly hired by Ryan’s company to implement Skype to do their firing over the internet. The film shines a light on the emotional repercussions of being unemployed.  The movie went on to win a number of awards, largely winning over critics and viewers alike (Fandango). The movies success can be fundamentally accredited to the changes in the economic sector. With the “Great Recession” (Wikipedia) coming to a head in September 2008, viewers of the film released in 2009 could easily see themselves in both Ryan Bingham and the employees that he was charged with firing. In the book the reader is left with the feeling that Ryan Bingham is heartless, he lets go numerous personnel without any hesitation. He recites the same lines of termination time and time again. However, Bingham of the film has undisclosed compassion for the people he is in charge of firing. Ryan’s hidden compassion and sense of humor are evident in the way that Ryan fights against Natalie to keep the company from transitioning to firing personnel over the internet, “He broke up with me over the internet” Natalie tells Ryan of her ex-boyfriend, “That’s kind of like firing someone over the internet” retorts Ryan (Reitman).

The film version of the narrative comes to a head with Ryan finally showing his hidden need for intimacy and connection after having a heart to heart with Jim, his soon to be brother-in-law about marriage. When Jim goes missing prior to Ryan’s sister wedding, Ryan is put in charge of finding Jim and bringing him to the ceremony. It is at this moment in the film, while Ryan is trying to convince Jim of the merits of marriage, that Ryan first realizes how truly isolated his is, “Jim it's Marriage, it's one of the most beautiful things on Earth, it's what people aspire to.”(Reitman) This climactic event of the movie cements the audience’s affection for Ryan and his plight.

            Clearly, a name is one of the few things that the novel “Up in the Air” and the film “Up in the Air” actually share. The film changed a sluggish, seemingly plot less novel that left the reader wondering “what is the point?” into a film that captured the spirit of the economic recession. The film did what the novel could not, make the audience care about Ryan Bingham and in turn make the audience care about the films underlining message of the need for human connection while managing to keep the story relevant and contemporary.

Works Cited:

1.      "Up in The Air Awards." Fandango.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr 2012. <http://www.fandango.com/upintheair_v452695/awards>.

2.      "Late-2000s recession.". Wikipedia, 19April2012. Web. 21 Apr 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Late-2000s_recession>.

3.      Kirn, Walter. Up in the Air. New York: Anchor Books, 2001. Print. 

4.      Reitman, Jason, dir. Up in the Air. Dreamworks, 2009. Film.