Customer Reviews
By
K. Harris "Film aficionado" (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
It seems hard to believe that it's been seven years since Alexander Payne's "Sideways" became the critical darling of 2004. Nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and winning Payne an Adapted Screenplay Oscar--that picture (along with Election and About Schmidt) signaled a talented filmmaker with an unorthodox worldview. Blending elements of comedy and drama, Payne has crafted com plex characters simultaneously frustrating and sympathetic--but altogether real. In adapting Kaui Hart Hemmings' intimate novel "The Descendants" to the big screen, Payne demonstrates (once again) a deft balance of emotions to create a picture both funny and heartbreaking. I so admired how Payne made vineyards and fine wines a major component, an extra character really, in the sublime "Sideways." In much the same way, Hawaii is a principle character (and I would contend one of the most pivotal) to "The Descendents." It would be easy to imagine someone jettisoning much of this rich texture, but Payne has crafted a loving tribute to the state's heritage in addition to one of the year's most surprising family dramas.George Clooney plays one of the titular descendants, someone whose family has great historical significance to the Hawaiian Islands. In fact, he and his many cousins own a great tract of undeveloped land that plays a major role in the film's fascinating side story. Front and center, however, is a more personal tale of family dysfunction and pulling together in crisis. When Clooney's somewhat estranged wife is incapacitated in an accident, Clooney must take charge of his troublesome teenage daughter (an astute Shailene Woodley) and his rebellious younger girl (an appealingly unexpected Amara Miller). With mom in a coma, Clooney is left to do his best to reconnect with the girls that he hasn't made enough time for. While this seems to be leading to some routine comic hijinks, the film takes a decidedly more serious turn as Clooney learns about his wife's true feelings. The rest of the movie walks the tightrope about how he and his daughters can channel these revelations and emerge stronger for it. And the film runs the gamut of emotions with anger, betrayal, love, and regret sharing equal time as the family embarks on a tumultuous journey together.While I know this makes the film sound like a bit of a downer, there is much humor to be en joyed as well. While I'm confident that many will reveal far more about the plot than I am willing to, I think that it is best to let the story unravel without expectation. This is very much an in-depth character study. As such, Clooney has one of his most rewarding roles. He goes through a lot, but he maintains a subtlety that always keeps the picture grounded (even in its more extreme elements). Woodley is a revelation and this is as far a departure from TV's "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" as she's likely to experience. I'm confident we'll be seeing more of her. Miller has a real ease and provides many well placed laughs and a few tears as well. Perhaps the film's biggest secret weapon is Nick Krause playing Woodley's friend. As a laconic and laid back surfer dude, Krause's scenes with Clooney have real impact. As an odd source of wisdom and support, he is a unique character in this piece."The Descendants," at the end of the day, is a quiet and thoughtful film. The film never plays up the huge emotional moments or strains for melodrama. It simply lets the characters exist as complex creations, with all their foibles and flaws in evidence. Its understated power, therefore, is all the more successful as it feels patently real. A treat for adult movie goers, 4 1/2 stars. KGHarris, 12/11.
By
Whitt Patrick Pond "Whitt" (Cambridge, MA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
In a similar vein to his earlier film Sideways, Alexander Payne's The Descendants is a film about people coping. The difference here is that in this film t hey are coping with the unacceptable and irresolvable. Based on the novel of the same name by Kaui Hart Hemmings and adapted by Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, The Descendants deals with the problems of a man discovering that his wife, who is now in a coma from which she will not recover, was unfaithful to him, with all of the ripple effects that something like that can create.Matt King (George Clooney) is a lawyer living on the island of Kaua'i in Hawaii. His wife Elizabeth (Patricia Hastie) is in a hospital where she lies in a coma resulting from a recent boating accident, and now Matt - who refers to himself as "the back-up parent" is suddenly thrust into the role of being the only parent to his two daughters, 17-year-old Alex (Shailene Woodley) and 10-year-old Scottie (Amara Miller), both of whom are exhibiting behavioral problems. To make matters worse, Matt is told that his wife is for all intents and purposes brain dead and will not recover and, in accordance with her wishes in her living will, must soon be taken off life support. And if that was not enough pressure to be under, Matt happens to be the sole trustee of a land trust worth hundreds of millions of dollars that he must soon make a decision on regarding its break-up and disposition, a decision of enormous interest to dozens of relatives who stand to benefit enormously from the sale of the land.As Matt begins to let Elizabeth's friends and family know of her impending death, he learns from Alex that Elizabeth was having an affair with another man. Which leaves Matt having to deal with feelings of anger, betrayal, and confusion, with no way to resolve them because the person he needs to resolve them with is in a coma from which she will never recover.Clooney does a deft turn as Matt, making him comical in the situations where he is clearly out of his depth and yet sympathetic as a man having to deal with anger and hurt seeking answers where there may not in fact be any. Shailene W oodley is outstanding, turning in a bravura performance as Alex who is caught in between: in between her mother and her father when she discovers her mother's affair, in between her mother and her younger sister whom she tries to protect from the truth, in between her father and her boyfriend Sid (Nick Krause) a genial slacker who unfortunately has the habit of saying clueless things that make people want to punch him in the face, and most of all, in between still being a child and being forced to be an adult by the situation they are all now in. Matthew Lillard's Brian Speer, the real estate agent whom Elizabeth was having an affair with, is an interesting casting choice, putting a likeable character actor in an unsympathetic role. Lillard gives Speer just the right touch, a guy who isn't truly villainous, just foolish. Which is part of the problem for Matt. There are no real villains in the situation, no matter how much he and Alex and Elizabeth's blunt bull-headed father (Robert Forster) want there to be. There are only people who make unfortunate choices, the consequences of which are left to others to deal with.The Hawaiian setting is interesting in how it's presented, not showing just the usual idyllic version most people have of Hawaii as an island paradise but the current day side of things where rampant development has made much of it just like anywhere else, visually reinforcing a point Matt makes in the film's opening narration: "My friends think that just because we live in Hawaii, we live in paradise. We're all just out here sipping Mai Tai's, shaking our hips and catching waves. Are they insane? Do they think we're immune to life? How can they possibly think our families are less screwed up? Our heartaches, less painful? Our cancers less deadly? ... Paradise? Paradise can go f[***] itself."Note: fair warning to parents. There's a lot of profanity in this movie and about half of it comes from the two girls, Alex and Scottie.Highly recommended for the performances and for not submitting to the usual easy Hollywood resolution.
By
Bonnie Brody "Book Lover and Knitter" (Port St. Lucie, FL) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE) (TOP 100 REVIEWER)
The Descendants, a movie starring George Clooney, is the best film I've seen all year. It is adult-themed, realistic and poignant. The dialogue seems real, the acting is superb and the photography of Hawaii is spellbindingly beautiful. The story is about Matt King, descended from King Kamehameha many generations back. He and his family have inherited quite a bit of land for which Matt is the executor and they are in the process of selling it. The proceeds will go to Matt and his cousins. Despite having wealth, Matt has lived frugally, to the point where one might question his motives. His wife, Elizabeth, has just been severely injured in a boating accident and is comatose. It is unlikely that she ever will wake up and her living will is very explicit that she wants her life support pulled.Matt has two daughters, Scottie and Alex. Alex is 17 and a handful. As the film opens, she is in a private school that may also be a rehab facility. Scottie, about 10, is acting out at school and at home since her mother's injury. Matt is clueless about how to raise his two daughters alone and has been very distant from his family spending most of his time working at his law practice. The crisis with Joanie is forcing him to be a primary parent and the film is excellent in showing Matt's development as a father.Matt goes to Oahu to pull Alex from school and bring her h ome. She is furious at her mother, having found out recently that she was having an affair. She tells her father and the two become co-conspirators in finding Joanie's lover and confronting him. Matt is flabbergasted about the affair. The marriage has not been going well but he had no suspicions that his wife loved another man.George Clooney is excellent in his part as are the two girls. The movie poignantly shows how the family starts pulling together into a semblance of a loving unit. The dialogue is fresh and real, not for the faint of heart or for those who mind cursing. I have not read the book so I can't compare the two but on its own merits, this film is a real winner.
By
Lorenzo M. in the Hollywood CA Area "Movie Wa... (North Hollywood, CA USA) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE)
MOVIE REVIEW #20: The DescendantsAlexander Payne, director of a couple of my favorite independent films "Sideways" and "Election" - has done it again. The "Descendants" was a surprisingly warm, entertaining and thoughtful film. It deals specifically with a family going through a specific tragedy and dealing with that tragedy and all the secrets they never knew existed.George Clooney pulls an emotionally charged and compassionate performance as a father dealing with his wife and her near fatal accident. (Played by Patricia Hastie of "Lost", basically playing a invalided accident victim - no dialogue at all.) He needs to deal with the solitude of losing a wife and dealing with estranged children who are remarkably good actors themselves. The oldest daughter is played by Shailene Woodley ("The OC", "Secret Life Of An American Teenager") and the youngest dau ghter played by Amara Miller (in her very first project ever).What made this movie so good for me was the complexity of Clooney's character and the depth he went to in order to deal with a big family secret, an estranged daughter, a curious daughter and a dying wife. It felt real and heartwarming to see his friends and a new real estate agent and his wife literally turn his world upside down! Try keeping a dry eye during this film.The movie feature a completely Hawaiian underscore with classic songs and ukulele strums as well as a realistic look at life in the modern day Hawaiian Islands. The greenery, the land, the ocean and even the never seen rural areas of middle-class homes - all are woven in such detail as to only enhance the story.The cast includes some other incredible performances by Mathew Lillard ("Scooby Doo", "Madd TV") , Judy Greer ("What Women Want', "13 Going on 30") and Beau Bridges ("Fabulous Baker Boys", "Stargate").Overall this movie has a lot to offer. R eal-life drama and passion and the only thing that might be off setting is that the "R" rating for this movie is because of the language. (Which includes the kids.) I can see why it's winning all the awards and the fact it is currently up for five Academy Award Nominations including; Actor In a Leading Role - George Clooney, Best Picture, Directing -Alexander Payne, Film Editing - Kevin Tent, and Writing (Adapted Screenplay) - Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash.A very well made film.
By
Andy Orrock (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE) (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)
I'd read Kaui Hart Hem mings' excellent novel once I heard that it was Alexander Payne's newest project. It seemed the perfect Payne vehicle: small enough to tell in whole without stripping out key parts (it's notable that Hart Hemmings' work started its life as a short story), featuring a flawed (though not deeply) protagonist at the heart of the story. Piling this success on top of 'Election,' 'About Schmidt' and 'Sideways,' I can only say: this guy needs to work more. I can't believe that he waited seven years after the brilliance of 'Sideways' to deliver another gem like 'The Descendants.'George Clooney has never been better than he is here as Matt King (though I thought his work in the title role as Michael Clayton was superb). He is (as widely quoted in the trailer) 'the backup parent.' Now, with his family suddenly reeling from a tragic event, King is thrust to the forefront - primary caretaker of two daughters who grew up quickly under his nose - right at a critical professional juncture in which he needs to make a critical decision about his family's stake in large swathes of Hawaiian lands held under their trust and jurisdiction. How King (and Clooney) handles those two rapidly evolving matters is the crux of the story.Whenever you read a book and then see the movie, you can't help but compare...What I liked...Shailene Woodley - She is stunningly good as older daughter Alexandra. It's an awesome portrayal. She's supposed to be model beautiful (check), a bit of a screw-up in her past (the movie gives a nod to that) and - to her father's surprise - a lot tougher and mature than he thought at event's outset. In every scene with Clooney (and there are many of them), she's every bit his equal as a presenceHawaii - Hart Hemmings' is Hawaiian, so she doesn't spend a lot of time discussing what makes Hawaii Hawaiian. Payne needs to do that for his wider audience. He does so deftly - at the opening in King's voice over in which he tells you that living in Hawaii is not like living in paradise (they have their own concerns like everyone else), in a scene in which they go to look at their property "for one last time," in the houses and neighborhoods he shows (most modestly middle class). This is the Hawaii of its residents, not its tourists.Other casting nuggets - Laird Hamilton as Troy (sounding reedy and borderline pathetic as you would expect someone in that situation)...brilliant choice; author Hart Hemmings tucked into a little Easter Egg as Matt's secretary...loved that; Matthew Lillard (Shaggy!) as Brian Speer...an unexpected choice, but pulled off very well indeed (his frozen face when confronted with King is perfect); Judy Greer as Julie Speer (was Payne casting due to the name rhyming?)...always a scene-stealer in supporting roles, she's great here againPushing the the wife's story into the background - Here was the major script choice made by Payne: in the book, we come to know a lot more about Matt's wife (she's 'Joanie' in the book, 'Elizabeth' on screen). We learn that she and Matt were vastly different. The boating accident that put Joanie in the hospital is very representative of the way she lived her life: loud and and way up on the risk-o-meter. One passage the stuck with me in the book. A restauranteur tells him that he "liked when Joanie came because her presence encouraged everyone to drink more." We learn about Joanie's personality in Matt's remembrances (the book is first-person from his perspective). Payne could have done the same by going back in time and showing them together as a couple. He chose not to do that. I think the movie is better for it. First, he's got two hours to tell a story that unfolded in print over almost 300 pages. Second, the movie works better with Matt needing to go it alone...he can't be helped by his wife. Her near-lifeless presence brings that home. What I didn't like...Matt and Joanie/Elizabeth's relationship - They're depicted here as having been mutual ly unhappy (the words "ask you for a divorce" are mentioned at least three times). In the book, it's more nuanced. They were, right from the start, very different. But Joanie "always came home with me." It was a marriage of opposites that - despite what outsiders might have seen and felt - worked. Or, rather, always had. That's why the revelation about his wife and Speer stung so deeply.Sid - In the book, Alex's friend Sid is a steady stream of surprise to Matt. He writes him off at the outset as shallow. Turns out, he's anything but. In movie, there's a hint of that. In the book, it's better: it's Sid that calls Julie Speer to the hospital. In the movie, Julie says she could "smell it on [Brian]" (after Matt and Alex's visit). In the book, she relates that "Sid told me. He called the house yesterday." Matt's response: "Sid," I say. Well." You can feel Matt's respect go up immensely with that one small scene. I liked that Sid was instrumental in letting that key moment come to pass.All in all, those are small quibbles. I heartily recommend this movie.
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