19 Great ‘Up in the Air’ and Airworld Links

Lists: The movie is hitting theaters worldwide and generating Oscar buzz. Eva Holland rounds up some can't-miss links.

12.11.09 | 10:28 AM ET

up in the air wallpaperWe just posted two original stories: Rob Verger’s Beyond Airworld, and an interview with director Jason Reitman and novelist Walter Kirn.

David Carr mixes a bit of film criticism with a profile of Reitman in this New York Times story. The New Yorker’s Anthony Lane also has a review of the movie.

Reitman and Kirn both appeared on Fresh Air—Reitman talks about humanizing characters like “Up in the Air” protagonist Ryan Bingham, while Kirn discusses his aim in creating a character who’s so at home in Airworld.

Get The Big Picture has a three-minute featurette with Reitman and “Up in the Air” co-stars Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. Big Picture’s Colin Boyd also relayed the news on “Up in the Air” being named 2009’s best film by the National Board of Review.

We kept tabs on the movie from the early filming stages through to the release of the first trailer.

Hollywood and Fine interviews Kirn about the real-life frequent flier who helped inspire the novel, and about the hands-off approach he took as it was transformed for the screen.

Bingham landed on our list of the 10 Greatest Fictional Travelers. Kirn’s concept of Airworld also made our list of the Seven Wonders of the Shrinking Planet.

Here’s Kirn on the bewildering spectacle of a Rolodex advertisement in the bottom of an airport security bin.

We rounded up the critical response to the book when it was first released back in 2001. We also pondered Kirn’s Airworld, and linked to other Airworld-worthy stories, here and here.

Finally, Film School Rejects interviewed Reitman about the now-famous press junket pie chart he created to track his most frequently asked questions.


Eva Holland is co-editor of World Hum. She is a former associate editor at Up Here and Up Here Business magazines, and a contributor to Vela. She's based in Canada's Yukon territory.


1 Comment for 19 Great ‘Up in the Air’ and Airworld Links

Carol Margolis 12.15.09 | 12:29 AM ET

I saw Up in The Air this weekend and did a write-up on how accurate I thought the travel story was. Overall I liked the travel aspect of the movie, since that is somewhat reflective of my life also (though I’ve been home about 80 nights this year.. double that of Ryan Bingham!), but I wanted a happier ending for the movie :-)  My thoughts are at http://bit.ly/8yLdlG (http://www.pearlsoftravelwisdom.com).

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