Assignment #1: Learning

communication from movies

You are required to watch the movie "The Terminal" with the
perspective of Communication.
Requirement:
Upload a 1-2 pager assignment in your own words on the
lessons you learnt about communication. you may cover the
following areas
- Non-verbal communication
- Facial expressions
- Gestures
- Vocal expressions / tones
- Barriers of communication
- Verbal communication
- Any other lesson or observation

Synopsis:

V iktor Navorski (Tom Hanks) a former Krakozhia citizen is almost in New York City for the first

time in his life. former & almost? While Viktor is flying to JFK Airport, his country has been
overthrown as a country with no international recognition to the new regime, all government
papers such as citizenship identities, passports, visas and currencies issued by Krakozhia have
also become void internationally. Upon arrival, Victor he has been refused entry into the United
States. Air services are barred entry into and out of Krakozhia thus Victor has no chance even to
go back to his home country until the situation gets better.

Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci), Director of Customs and Border Protection at airport, allows Viktor
to stay in the international lounge until the issue is settled. Dixon facilitated Victor confiscated
with meal vouchers to last for a day or two. Dixon thinks he cannot detain Victor for “no crime”
so he has a plan in mind that sooner or later Victor will try to escape out from JKF and he will
book him under law. Viktor, on the other hand, wants to be as proper as possible and decides to
stay in the lounge, he poses problems for Dixon who is an aspirant to get promotion to head of
the department. Thus, Dixon gets personal with Victor and he chooses to do whatever he can to
prevent Viktor’s entry into the United States.
Assignment#1
Muhammad Adnan
20201-28242
Victor has limited resources and understanding of English, both are really required during his stay
at airport, so he starts to use his non-verbal communication, facial expressions, gesture and body
language to create positive impact for his survival in this situation. Victor learns to collect money
for food by retrieving vacant baggage trolleys for the 25-cent reward from the machine, until
Dixon prevents this. He then befriends with a lounge employee who gives him food in exchange
for information about a female officer, the guy is infatuated with. Eventually, Viktor helps them
marry each other. He makes friendship with two more airport employees. After too much efforts,
finally he gets a job as a construction worker at the airport, earning $19 an hour. On one
instance, Viktor is asked to interpret for a desperate Russian man with undocumented drugs for
his sick father. Victors helps the man barring the drug from confiscation and resolving the crisis.
One of his friends at internal lounge, exaggerates this incident to his fellow co-workers and as a
result, Viktor earns the respect and admiration of all the airport staff.

Amelia Warren (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a United Airlines flight attendant, towards whom Viktor
gets affection, she is in transit through JFK every few weeks. Victor tells her that the purpose of
his visit to New York is to collect an autograph from the tenor saxophonist Benny Golson. He also
reveals that the peanut can he carries contains nothing more than an autographed copy as his
father was a jazz enthusiast who had discovered the famous portrait in a Hungarian newspaper
in 1958 and resolved to get an autograph of all the 57 jazz musicians featured on the photograph
but died before he could finish his collection.

Finally, after few months, the war in Krakozhia ends but Dixon will still not allow Viktor to enter
the United States. Amelia with help of her ‘friend’ obtains permission for Viktor to travel within
the US, Viktor is happy but disappointed as well because Amelia has reestablished her
relationship with the man. Dixon, on the other hand refuses to sign the form granting him the
right to stay in the United States, instead tries to blackmail Viktor with the consequences for his
airport friends and Victor decides to go back to his home country but one of his friends runs in
front of Viktor's plane and asks Viktor to go anyway. The plane gets delay, giving Viktor ample
time to go into the city and pursue his father’s dream. He leaves the airport for Ramada Inn
where Benny Golson is performing, He attends the show and collects the autograph, Victor hails
a taxi and telling driver, "I am going home”.

Assignment#1
Muhammad Adnan
20201-28242
Communication Barriers involved:

1. Environmental Aspect:
America, where people are individualistic and always mind with their own business, that
made Viktor having a hard time getting help from them. So, by using his non-verbal
communication skill he tried to engage with some people that worked there, befriended
them, and helped them. His friends then helped him to get out from airport.

2. Verbal Communication:
Viktor doesn’t know English well. He couldn’t understand what news channel was reporting
about Krakozhia, he couldn’t understand questions asked by officials. He bought books in
English and Krakozhian, to learn English and communicate.

3. Trust Issues:
The janitor at JFK airport, didn’t trust Viktor at first because he thought that Viktor is a secret
agent but Viktor tried to get close to him and tried to change his perception through his body
language by allowing him to do his Xray scan, later the same janitorial staff helped Victor
getting out of the airport and visit United States.

4. Organizational Barrier:
Dixon was getting promotion until Viktor came and posed problems for him. He did
everything to get rid of Viktor and passing ‘this problem’ to another. Viktor with his non-
verbal skills befriended with everyone at airport and helped him getting out, nobody pays
attentions to what Dixon say anymore.

5. Organizational Barrier:
An In-flight catering car driver fell in love with a female official, but he couldn’t tell her
because she has higher position. In an exchange of free food from catering, Viktor helped
them both getting close to each other and eventually both married.

6. Emotional Aspects:
Amelia helped Viktor in getting out from airport through her ‘friend’ who is a govt. official
and she has an affair with. Viktor realized that she has renewed her relationship with same
man. Victor got emotional affiliation with Amelia and he is disappointed when he got to know
that Amelia is going out with him. When Victor was going to enter the cab, he saw Amelia
exiting the cab and giving her a wishful smile, so he let her go.

Assignment#1
Muhammad Adnan
20201-28242