The Terminal

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2:24

The Terminal

PG-13

2004

2h 8m

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

61%

Tomatometer

207 Reviews

73%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

When Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks), an Eastern European tourist, arrives at JFK in New York, war breaks out in his country and he finds himself caught up in international politics. Because of the war, the Department of Homeland Security won't let him enter or exit the United States. He's trapped at JFK -- indefinitely. While living at the airport, Viktor falls for a flight attendant (Catherine Zeta-Jones). She may have feelings for him too. But what good is love if Viktor can't leave the terminal?

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Critics Consensus

The Terminal transcends its flaws through the sheer virtue of its crowd-pleasing message and a typically solid star turn from Tom Hanks.

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Namrata Joshi

Outlook

Spielberg turns the sublime into the banal, at times taking it to the verge of ridiculous.

Rated: 2/4

Jan 7, 2019

Full Review

Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Lovely and well worth sharing with your family.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 29, 2010

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Nick Schager

Lessons of Darkness

Hanks' overdone slapstick antics and awful accent ... keep this featherweight farce from taking flight.

May 4, 2005

Full Review

Dan Buffa

Ramble On With Buffa (Substack)

What builds out from there is one man having an extraordinary effect on a group of people who never even knew he existed. Spielberg’s film deftly told a tale about the immediate prejudice towards immigrants.

Dec 29, 2024

Full Review

Alan Jones

Radio Times

While the performances are appealing, Spielberg relies too heavily on the airport-terminal-as-microcosm-of-society angle and the saccharine sentimentality gets piled on as the credibility decreases.

Rated: 3/5

Apr 12, 2024

Full Review

Akos Peterbencze

Vulnerable Man (Medium)

Although it is way too idealistic, The Terminal works because the characters’ idiosyncrasies are still relevant today. The script conveys that universal bond immigrants form between each other, given their social status in a foreign country.

Jul 22, 2023

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Conrad C

One of Tom Hanks better roles, and there's a long list of those to choose from. The airport setting provides a fun feeling of familiarity by the end of the film.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/16/25

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David D

Steven S knows how to entertain and this pure unadulterated light entertainment. A great watch delivered by a superb cast.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/04/25

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Mike V

Life is waiting. The Terminal is a 2004 American comedy-drama film produced and directed by Steven Spielberg ✈️ It’s not perfect, and is probably a little too long, but this is a an endearing movie… It’s good 🙂 Worth a watch. I’d recommend it if you like this genre 👍🏼 An Eastern European tourist unexpectedly finds himself stranded in JFK airport, and must take up temporary residence there.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/02/25

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laila n

I have recently been watching Tom Hank's movies. The Terminal was one of them. I really needed to watch something good, especially because I was demotivated. Then I found this movie. I am giving a 4 star just because the ending was a bit boring for me. I don't know maybe I wanted all his struggles to be for a better reason? Or I wanted the story to go on a bit more showing how he gets there finally in more details. Anyways, I would still recommend it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/29/25

Full Review

Tjerk v

Meh, just meh. The story is nice but too long. They should have cut all the scenes with the Catherine Zeta Jones. They just didn't ad to the story. Tom Hanks accent wasn't bad but started to annoy me about half way through the movie. So yeah, meh.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

08/27/25

Full Review

Sam M

i really liked the movie, great characters and a good cast. beautifull ending, would deffenitly reccomend!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/27/25

Full Review

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Steven Spielberg

Director

Tom Hanks

Viktor Navorski

Catherine Zeta-Jones

Amelia Warren

Stanley Tucci

Frank Dixon

Chi McBride

Joe Mulroy

Diego Luna

Enrique Cruz

The Terminal: Official Clip - Drugs Are For Goat!

2:47

The Terminal: Official Clip - Tom Hanks Leaves the Airport

3:40

The Terminal: Official Clip - Gupta's Sacrifice

3:14

The Terminal: Official Clip - Awkward Airport Date

2:50

The Terminal: Official Clip - Tom Hanks Wants a Job

2:13

The Terminal: Official Clip - Tom Hanks Tries to Sleep

2:08

The Terminal: Official Clip - Tom Hanks vs. the Camera

3:45

The Terminal: Official Clip - Zoe Saldana Marries Diego Luna

1:39

The Terminal: Official Clip - Tom Hanks & Catherine Zeta-Jones Kiss

1:52

The Terminal: Official Clip - Diego Luna Loves with Zoe Saldana

3:49

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The Terminal: Trailer 1

2:24

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Synopsis

When Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks), an Eastern European tourist, arrives at JFK in New York, war breaks out in his country and he finds himself caught up in international politics. Because of the war, the Department of Homeland Security won't let him enter or exit the United States. He's trapped at JFK -- indefinitely. While living at the airport, Viktor falls for a flight attendant (Catherine Zeta-Jones). She may have feelings for him too. But what good is love if Viktor can't leave the terminal?

Director: Steven Spielberg
Producer: Laurie MacDonald, Walter F. Parkes, Steven Spielberg
Screenwriter: Sacha Gervasi, Jeff Nathanson
Distributor: DreamWorks SKG
Production Co: DreamWorks SKG, Amblin Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Drug Reference|Brief Language)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 18, 2004, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $77.0M
Runtime: 2h 8m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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