Unbreakable (DVD) Review

Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg team up once again in the romantic comedy, The Terminal. With an out-of-the-ordinary plot and interesting characters, this is one film you will either love or hate

Taking a vacation from his home nation, the Republic of Krakozhia, Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks) steps off his plane into the terminal at JFK International in New York. Little does he know that while his plane in flight, Krakozhia erupted in civil war - dissolving the Republic and leaving Viktor without a homeland. Because the United States has no dealings as of yet with the new nation, Viktor is literally a man without a country, and he can not leave the terminal. He can't return to Krakozhia, nor can he set foot on US soil outside the doors of the terminal.

Following the explanation of this snafu by the head of terminal security Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci), Viktor slowly comes to realize (the language barrier is great at first) the implications of the news reported to him. Dixon's first inclination is to convince Viktor that he can make a run for it when the security detail changes shifts (but Dixon plans to have Viktor arrested outside so that the man isn't his problem). But Viktor doesn't bite. Instead, he decides to stay in the terminal, and the result is a hilarious and sometimes inspiring cacophony of events that lead Viktor to find his own way to survive.

Running out of food coupons, Viktor returns luggage carts and collects the deposits. He then uses the change to buy cheeseburgers from Burger King. But Dixon soon puts a stop to the practice by declaring that only security officials can gather the carts.

As Dixon continues to obstruct Viktor's stay, the homeless man makes friends with many of the airport personnel, builds his own dwelling, and acquires a job within the airport working as a carpenter. Along the way, he strikes up a periodic romance with airline stewardess Amelia Warren (Catherine Zeta-Jones), and he watches events unfold in his beloved Krakozhia via CNN.

When Dixon is promoted to the top position at JFK, Viktor spoils his plans with some creative interpretation on behalf of a foreign passenger detained with illegal drugs. Telling Dixon the drugs are for the man's goat, rather than his father, he is able to grant the man passage much to Dixon's dismay. In the end, Viktor reaches celebrity status among the employees and regulars of the airport terminal. When the Republic of Krakozhia is restored, they celebrate with him at the airport bar, and they help him to foil Dixon one last time so that Viktor can complete his voyage to New York City where he has a very special task to perform

A fascinating concept of "what if," The Terminal may be an implausible scenario, but it's nevertheless an entertaining one. Tom Hanks does a great job of moving Viktor's character from a man who barely speaks English to a man who is fully functional in a foreign airport terminal. Not to be confused with one of the greatest films of all time, movie buffs could still do far worse than to spend a relaxing evening watching this one.

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one. Source: http://thedvdreport.blogspot.com/2006/02/terminal-dvd.htmlLeona Blog75856
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