The Descendants

Starring: George Clooney, Sailene Woodley, Amara Miller, Nick Krause, Patricia Hastie, Beau Bridges, Matthew Lillard, Judy Greer
Directed by: Alexander Payne
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Comedy
2011

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A father (George Clooney) tries to reconnect with his daughters (Sailene Woodley, Amara Miller) after his wife slips into a coma and he discovers she had been cheating on him.

Review:

Tim: The Descendants was one of the best reviewed films of 2012, and for good reason- it's a funny, touching, memroable movie. It is exactly the type of movie you'd expect from Alexander Payne for this follow up to Sideways. I really enjoyed the movie- the characters were well written, the dialogue funny and sharp, and the actors well cast. However, I felt like the movie was still missing something- the emotional punch that separates the great movies from the good ones. This was actually a similar complaint I had with Payne's previous films, like Election, Sideways, and About Schmidt. These movies are good (well, Election sucked), but they are not great.

The good news is that The Descendants is clearly Alexander Payne's best film yet. It is the richest emotionally, although it still doesn't reach the heights needed to make it great. It has a lot of the elements that made Payne's previous movies memorable (even when they weren't very good), but it feels like his most polished film yet.

The film is simple, yet very complex. We have George Clooney as the back-up parent, struggling to deal with a series of crazy events that threaten to pull his family apart. He tries to reconnect with his daughters and deal with the realization that his coma wife was cheating on him. We have lots of side stories, including the toolbag guy his oldest daughter is hanging out with, an overbearing father-in-law who blames him for his wife's condition, a complicated attempt to meet the man his wife cheated on him with, and more. The film does a good job of pulling all these various elements together. Not all of these work, though. The whole story about the selling of the land in Hawaii ties well into the various elements towards the end. However, this aspect of the film didn't seem as interesting or engaging as the other plotlines. As a whole, it's surprising how much is in this film and yet, it all still made sense without having anything feel rushed. That is an achievement for Payne.

Clooney is very good the lead role. He gives such an everyman, relatable performance that it is just very fun to watch. We can sympathize and empathize with his character, and we're drawn into his peculiar predicament. Clooney sometimes gets too much credit and not enough criticism, but he absolutely deserves all the acclaim for this very strong performance. He was nominated for Best Actor, and I'm glad he got that recognition. I really enjoyed him in the film.

The supporting characters are quite good, too. Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller were both enjoyable as his daughters. I also liked seeing Beau Bridges, Matthew Lillard, and Judy Greer in small supporting roles. They all made this movie better. The cast is really good and they all work so well together. Their interactions are pretty fantastic.

The Descendants features some very good characters and some humorous situations. The dialogue is crisp and funny. However, the movie didn't deliver the emotional impact that it needed to. I was interested in the characters, but the emotional depth just wasn't there. I could certainly relate to Clooney's character, but I should have been floored by this movie. It was too easy to shrug off.

Still, The Descendants is a really, really good movie, and one I would highly recommend. The cast is great and the story is unique. I wouldn't consider it one of the best of 2011, but it's a really solid, entertaining film. Good work, Mr. Payne.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Election, About Schmidt, Sideways