Denzel does it good...
10/10
Author: MartianTom from United Kingdom
24 May 2013

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

This isn't a film about a plane crash. This is a film about addiction: the horrors, the lies, the regrets, the distortions, the destruction. And Denzel does it so, so well. Take it from an addict who's been there and who knows. The symbolism at the heart of the film is at once obvious and profoundly convincing. The plane represents Whip's life, and the passengers are the people he takes with him on that journey to his literal and metaphorical rock bottom. Most survive - but a few die. Such is the life of every addict. Ultimately, it is the story of redemption following acceptance. That acceptance leads to physical incarceration - but it also leads to freedom of the most important kind: freedom from guilt.

The freedom that only comes through honesty and a form of spiritual awakening. 'Who are you?' That's the question asked at the end - the question that the movie sets out to explore and answer. It's the question all addicts - if they survive long enough to embrace recovery - eventually have to ask themselves. I'm so pleased to have seen this film. It's renewed my own sense of purpose in recovery. The message of the film is very powerful. It gives me hope. Well done to all concerned - but especially to Denzel. Here's an actor who knows his stuff.