Overview
A corporate downsizer's life on the road takes a turn when love enters the picture.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- None
- witty
- melancholic
- sardonic
- date night
- reflective weekend viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a smart, timely blend of humor and poignancy, led by charismatic performances and polished writing and editing.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Ryan Bingham treats frequent flying, hotel rooms, rental cars, and minimal possessions as a deliberate lifestyle threatened by workplace modernization.
Corporate downsizing and mass employment termination place Ryan’s work and the film’s relationships within the anxieties of late-2000s America.
Ryan specializes in terminating employees while maintaining a controlled, reassuring manner, turning human loss into a managed business service.
Ryan’s attachment to Alex Goran conflicts with his cherished independence and resistance to conventional domestic commitments.
Films like Up in the Air, and why
Lost in Translation
shares a witty, bittersweet romantic comedy tone, emotionally guarded protagonists, and themes of loneliness and unexpected intimacy
The Holiday
shares an adult romantic drama structure centered on emotional disconnection, self-reinvention, and the difficulty of sustaining relationships
The Devil Wears Prada
shares a workplace-centered comedy-drama approach, contemporary social observation, and a charismatic protagonist confronting personal stagnation
Movie Details
- Director
- Jason Reitman
- Release Date
- 2009-12-04
- Runtime
- 110 min
- Rating
- 6.9 / 10 (4150)
Cast
- George Clooney
- Vera Farmiga
- Anna Kendrick
- Sam Elliott
- Amy Morton
- Jason Bateman
- Melanie Lynskey
- J.K. Simmons
- Danny McBride
- Zach Galifianakis
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel
- Rent
- JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Up in the Air about?
- A relentlessly mobile corporate downsizer must reconsider his carefully insulated life when intimacy and technological change begin grounding him.
- What is Up in the Air like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Up in the Air as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Up in the Air violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Up in the Air.
- What did critics think of Up in the Air?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a smart, timely blend of humor and poignancy, led by charismatic performances and polished writing and editing.
- Which films are like Up in the Air?
- Films with a similar feel include Lost in Translation, The Holiday, and The Devil Wears Prada.
- How long is Up in the Air?
- Up in the Air runs 110 minutes.
- Where can I watch Up in the Air?
- In United States, Up in the Air streams on fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel.
