Sully: The Story Behind the Hudson Miracle

When I heard that there’s going to be a movie about Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, I rolled my eyes. I thought it’s going to be one of those films that will bore me out of my skull. After leaving the theater, Sully changed my mind much like the NTSB officials did during the final hearing.

I was rooting for the captain as the NTSB tried to deem the incident as pilot error. I’m glad that he fought to save his reputation by making them include the human factor. No amount of computer simulations could ever account for something that one has experienced first-hand. Tom Hanks did a phenomenal job portraying Captain Sullenberger as did Aaron Eckhart as First Officer Jeff Skiles. The what-if vision of the plane crashing into New York buildings almost made me believe that it was real. Clint Eastwood took the events of January 15, 2009, and transformed them into a fierce, hauntingly real drama.

The only thing that confused me was when the passengers got out of the sinking plane. Two people jumped out and started to swim toward the shore before doubling back toward the aircraft. Why couldn’t they just stay with the other passengers until help arrived? Why must they channel their inner Olympic swimmers and freestyle it in the cold? It honestly baffles me.

I almost laughed at the irony that the NTSB officials went with what the computer has generated rather than looking at it from a human point of view. We depend so much on technology these days that the human touch is slowly on its way out. The scene where the NTSB showed the computer simulations, my heart sank a little thinking that it’s all over for Captain Sullenberger. After they had listened to the black box recording, I smiled in triumph for the Captain as he finally convinced the officials that he was right. Take that, computer simulations!

It was also great to see the real passengers and the real Captain Sullenberger at the end as the credits rolled. I can only imagine what they have gone through and how lucky they are to have survived such an ordeal. I applaud Captain Sullenberger’s quick thinking and New York’s finest for being the first responders. If this film isn’t considered for an Oscar next year, then there’s something wrong with the Academy.

Photo via Warner Bros.