“Sully” is a refreshingly blunt and thoughtful film by one of American film’s most prolific and iconic voices.
Clint Eastwood has an obvious infatuation with men who do their respective jobs well. “Sully” marks the third film in what I would like to call Eastwood’s “Just do your job” series. A series that includes films like “J. Edgar” and “American Sniper” that deal very clearly with men in modern history who show up, do their jobs and go home.
Yet what sets these men a part from others in their profession is some of the extraordinary things that they do while on the job- like creating an important security organization or killing a lot of terrorists. But what Eastwood finds so fascinating about these men is that they always considered themselves to be just a person doing their jobs. Nothing more and nothing less.
This mentality more or less describes Eastwood as a director. He has a no nonsense approach that is apparent most in “Sully”. Yet this idea that Eastwood is an auteur who deals more with black and white absolutes is completely misguided. Eastwood has specialized in making interesting films that nobody really expected to be so. For who would expect depth and thoughtful introspection on America from the embodiment of the American cowboy?
What sets “Sully” apart from other similar Eastwood films is that it never dips too far into the hero worship. In fact, the film very clearly has a message against the very idea of hero worship. Those people who worship captain Sully Sullenberger are clearly misguided according to Eastwood. And that the clear heroes of the Miracle on the Hudson are the first responders. That the gratitude should be placed on a collective as opposed to one person. Something that “American Sniper” and “J. Edgar” put on the backburner.
The films themselves almost act like allegorical pieces surrounding a post 9-11 America. “J. Edgar” acts like a film primarily about the importance of surveillance and law and order. Much like how important and talked about the post 9-11 security measures were. While “American Sniper” seems like a propaganda piece that was made to discuss the overtly Islamophobic feelings during the U.S. war in Iraq.
Yet “Sully” paints a much more optimistic picture. It thoughtfully weaves 9-11 like imagery through the first few scenes in the film and clearly states that it is not going to be one of those films. During the first act one of the characters says something that sums up the feelings and message of the film when it comes to post 9-11 feelings. He says that “New York hasn’t had good news like this in some time. Especially involving an airplane.”
“Sully” very clearly aims to be a film that wants to remind people of what can be accomplished if those post 9-11 feelings of oneness can be re-kindled. Eastwood warns us away from that hero worship and wants us to look towards the collective.
There may be some who believe that all of this is too intricate for the man who spoke to an empty chair. However, they cannot deny that, much like Sullenberger, there is something much more intelligent and thoughtful about this miracle of a film.
