The Terminal (2004) review

Tom Hanks being Tom Hanks 

When you watch The Terminal for the first time you'll instantly get that Spielberg feel to it. It's a film that makes you smile from start to finish.

The Terminal takes place in an airport and your instantly introduced to the main character, Victor Laborsky (Tom Hanks), who can't get a visa into the USA. His own country is also at war and restrictions don't allow him to return their either. This leaves him stuck at JFK Airport until he can get his visa sorted, and thus the comedy of events unfold and bring us into the life of Victor Laborsky as he's stuck inside the walls of the airport.

Given any other main lead and you'd be forgiven for thinking this sounds dull, because is does. The one factor that changes that is that main lead is played by Tom Hanks. Savior. 

He can do no wrong in this film as you first come across him stumbling into the airport with his suitcase, looking terribly vexed and lost at sea. You instantly smile and know you are in for a classic of a film. It's not till later in the film that you really start to appreciate Victor Laborsky as a character we can side with. The people he meets, the friends he makes and the characters that pop in and out of the airport throughout all have an impact into the outcome of this unique Spielberg classic.

Catherine Zeta-Jones is also in this film as hapless lover Ameila Warren. Seemingly always in a rush to meet her 'lover', Amelia first encounters Victor as she slips on a wet floor as she didn't notice the plainly obvious "wet floor" sign right in front of her. To be fair she was on her phone but still..

Victor's presence in the airport draws the attention of the airport staff, who recruit him into their midnight poker games where they play for lost items.

The whole films premise is just Victor waiting for his visa so he can enter the USA, and the calamity that unfolds as he makes JFK Airport his home for the foreseeable future. Every character is interesting enough to keep you watching, with sub plots and mini love interests that involve Victor as a guide for the people he meets. 

It works as a family film to get you through a Sunday evening in the winter, and it works very well. 

Verdict 9/10