A tedious schmaltz-fest that feels more like the work of the cinematically challenged Ephron than the supremely gifted Spielberg.
The Terminal (2004)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:195
Fresh:118
Rotten:77
Average Rating:6.2/10
Consensus: Tom Hanks and the rest of the amiable cast make this bumpy ride worth sitting through.
Runtime: 2 hrs 9 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: Academy Award® winners Tom Hanks ("Philadelphia," "Forrest Gump") and Catherine Zeta-Jones ("Chicago") star in "The Terminal," under the direction of Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Steven... Academy Award® winners Tom Hanks ("Philadelphia," "Forrest Gump") and Catherine Zeta-Jones ("Chicago") star in "The Terminal," under the direction of Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Steven Spielberg ("Schindler’s List," "Saving Private Ryan"). "The Terminal" tells the story of Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks), a visitor to New York from Eastern Europe, whose homeland erupts in a fiery coup while he is in the air en route to America. Stranded at Kennedy Airport with a passport from nowhere, he is unauthorized to actually enter the United States and must improvise his days and nights in the terminal’s international transit lounge until the war at home is over. As the weeks and months stretch on, Viktor finds the compressed universe of the terminal to be a richly complex world of absurdity, generosity, ambition, amusement, status, serendipity and even romance with a beautiful flight attendant named Amelia (Catherine Zeta-Jones). But Viktor has long worn out his welcome with airport official Frank Dixon, who considers him a bureaucratic glitch, a problem he cannot control but wants desperately to erase. "The Terminal" also stars Emmy winner Stanley Tucci (TV’s "Winchell," "Road to Perdition") as Frank Dixon. Rounding out the main cast are Chi McBride (TV’s "Boston Public"), Diego Luna ("Y Tu Mama, Tambien"), Barry "Shabaka" Henley ("Ali"), Kumar Pallana ("The Royal Tenenbaums"), Zoë Saldana ("Drumline"), Eddie Jones ("Seabiscuit") and Jude Ciccolella ("Down With Love"). Walter F. Parkes ("Catch Me If You Can"), Steven Spielberg and Laurie MacDonald ("The Ring") are producing "The Terminal," with Patricia Whitcher, Jason Hoffs and Andrew Niccol serving as executive producers. The screenplay is by Sacha Gervasi and Jeff Nathanson from a story by Niccol. [More]
Starring: Tom Hanks, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Stanley Tucci, Chi McBride
Starring: Tom Hanks, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Stanley Tucci, Chi McBride, Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Barry Shabaka Henley
Director: Steven Spielberg
Director: Steven Spielberg
Screenwriter: Sacha Gervasi, Jeff Nathanson
Producer: Steven Spielberg, Walter F. Parkes, Laurie MacDonald
Composer: John Williams
Studio: DreamWorks Distribution LLC
Reviews for The Terminal
Much of the action is in fact predictable but in a satisfying, old-fashioned way.
That Spielberg refuses to go after bigger game keeps the film a banal exercise in sentimentality.
Speilberg and Hanks make "The Terminal" an enjoyable flight, and not an interminable bore.
There's a thin line between fable and twaddle, and this feel-good trifle veers dangerously close to the latter.
The small joys it has to offer are wholly dependent on the willingness of the audience to indulge in the proverbial suspension of disbelief. And believe me, much indulging is necessary.
The Terminal is quintessential Spielberg: perfectly cast, technically breathtaking, sentimental to the point of being one sugar cube away from gooey and extremely pleasurable to watch.
An enjoyable ensemble movie anchored by Hanks' incredible -- and incredibly generous -- performance.
Hanks' perfectly rendered Navorski offsets the hogwash and makes the film's shortcomings bearable.
...a delicate, delightful piece of filmmaking that works best as an allegorical comedy, even if allegorical comedy requires a tone that Spielberg can't always maintain.
A gentle alternative to noisy kid-oriented action flicks, raucous comedies and the agitprop of Fahrenheit 9/11.
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