THE TERMINAL, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Tom Hanks, was a sure bet contender in 2004, boxing office #35 in the States, 20th worldwide, total take reaching $219,400,000. Unlike too many modern-era comedies, this didn’t flail a barrage of crude haymakers. The savvy director, his chameleon star and the screenplay by Sacha Gervasi and Jeff Nathanson paced out deftly delivered jabs and gentle but telling pokes in the leave-smiling manner of humanist larks from an earlier time. Its underdog fable of an Average Joe (in this case ‘Viktor’) recalls when story spinners like Capra, Lubitsch and Sturges focused more on likable people than wreckable property. Plus it really happened—sort of. *

‘Viktor Navorski’ (Hanks), arrives in the USA from his native ‘Krakozhia’ only to find that his East European homeland has suffered a coup, and the States, not recognizing the new regime, won’t let Viktor in. Or out. Relieved of passport, he’s stuck at a terminal in JFK airport. Shock and confusion make way for determination and ingenuity, as the good-natured refugee befriends a variety of airport and airline employees and makes himself useful in his new ‘home.’ One plus is bemused stewardess ‘Amelia Warren’ (Catherine Zeta-Jones); a definite minus is ‘Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci), the airport’s stony Acting Field Commissioner.

Mishandling could’ve made this treacly and trite, but—unless lazy cynicism has crippled your spirit—Spielberg, cast & crew pull it off by knowing just how far to take setups & scenes, gags & heartstrings without dulling impact & resonance. Hanks doesn’t resort to cheap shots with Viktor’s fragmented and accented English, and his skill with physical humor gets plum airing. Zeta-Jones is winning as the stu from dreamland (remind me to be a pilot, next life) and Tucci is perfect as the officious, tight-wound type who sees people as impediments to sweep up.

A cute subplot works thanks to the charm and likability of Zoe Saldana and Diego Luna. The huge, detailed set (arranged in a large hangar at the LA/Palmdale Regional Airport) effectively serves as a supporting character. John Williams adds an endearing Euro-Balkan flavor with his score.

Production cost tabled $60,000,000. With Barry Shabaka Henley, Kumar Pallana, Chi McBride, Eddie Jones. 128 minutes.

* Inspiration (and reminder not to lose your papers)—Iranian refugee Mehran Karimi Nasseri (1945-2022), stuck in France without documentation, lived in the departure lounge of Terminal 1, Charles de Gaulle Airport—for eighteen years. He died there.

Nasseri was still in ‘non- transit’ when a French comedy borrowed his flight plight. Tombés du ciel/Lost In Transit was released in 1993, directed & written by Philippe Lioret and starring Jean Rochefort and Marisa Paredes.