Note from Istanbul

I did this week's readings on a plane to Istanbul.  I feel like the literal act of transit should imbue the whole question of transnational cinema with extra insight, but at the moment it just feels like I left my brain trailing behind me in the ether over Europe somewhere.  There must be something useful to explore along the lines of air travel and confinement - a kind of prison in the air, it's own world apart, to be endured as a right of passage.  I wonder if there are good examples of 'transnational' films that delve into this experience.  Most examples I can think of treat planes and airports pretty superficially, as places of arrival and departure, as chapter markers, or as visible evidence of mobility and or the aspiration for such.  I've never seen The Suitors, but it seems like the extreme example of being confined in a suitcase isn't that far off. Not that I'm complaining, really, I sort of like being in my seat with nowhere to go and nothing to do but read and flip through the in-flight media offerings. Maybe that's where I should be looking for a connection - the airline movie market as the ultimate transnational cinema. Hmm.  Hopefully my brain will catch up to me soon and I'll figure it out.