In just three films, director Jason Reitman (Juno, Thank You For Smoking) has become one American cinema’s most relevant new voices. His masterly Up in the Air, the tale of a closed-down corporate axe man (George Clooney) who fires people for a living before experiencing unexpected, personal connections against the backdrop of current economic strife, is a film so plugged into the zeitgeist of what it feels like right here, right now in America, that the screenplay crackles with immediacy and relevance. Adapted from the novel by Walter Kirn, Up in the Air features a never-better Clooney in definitive movie-star mode as a hotshot loner whose goals in life—to rack up frequent flier miles and maintain elite travel status—are challenged by a rambunctious upstart (Anna Kendrick), independent-minded fling (Vera Farmiga) and inconvenient family nuptials. Featuring real-life economic casualties in pivotal scenes, the film belongs to Clooney, daringly unguarded and unabashedly tender with Farmiga, the go-to actress for a heady mix of beauty and steel. Savvy and sensitive, Up in the Air knows the dire straits Americans face right now, and the ties we need to make it through. A gem.