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The Descendants

The Descendants (2011)

November. 18,2011
|
7.3
|
R
| Drama Comedy

With his wife Elizabeth on life support after a boating accident, Hawaiian land baron Matt King takes his daughters on a trip from Oahu to Kauai to confront a young real estate broker, who was having an affair with Elizabeth before her misfortune.

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Reviews

Dynamixor
2011/11/18

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

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AutCuddly
2011/11/19

Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

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TrueHello
2011/11/20

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

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Fleur
2011/11/21

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

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jessy zaki
2011/11/22

Actually i was expecting more after all the hype around it. yes the acting is fine, but i felt the movie is really empty. i was expecting better cinematography showing the beauty of Hawaii, no plot, no message(not necessary), no brilliant acting as it's claimed, no catchy background score, no character development..actually nothing is worth watching. not to be even compared with SIDEWAYS(the director's chef d'oeuvre). A Big Disappointment.

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albertsmith-32785
2011/11/23

This is a great film about a man who tries to reconnect with his daughters and sort things out after his wife is critically injured in a boating accident. Alexander Payne has surely become a voice to be reckoned with, and each new film of his brings about a new layer of complexity to his work. George Clooney manages to show us that he indeed a good actor when in his element and both Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller are exceptional as his daughters. The setting is gorgeous Hawaii and although this isn't a "visual" film per se there is a symphony of sorts between the emotions of the main characters and the seas and plains of Hawaii. This is one unmissable film.

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TheLittleSongbird
2011/11/24

With the promising cast, an interesting subject matter, the substantial awards attention, the critical acclaim and being familiar with and highly appreciating much of Alexander Payne's work (especially 'Sideways', his recent film 'Downsizing' is an exeption), interest in seeing 'The Descendants' was high.On the most part, after finally seeing it, 'The Descendants' delivers. It's not perfect and it doesn't quite make it in my list of my favourite films of 2011. It's not Payne's best or my favourite of his, as indicated already that's 'Sideways' while also loving 'About Schmidt' and 'Election'. Its many good points however are outstanding and far outweigh the issues, making it a very good film and almost (but not quite) great one. Considering though that it had all the ingredients to be great, that it wasn't quite gave a slight air of disappointment. 'The Descendants' may not say much new or deep, for a film with heavy and complicated themes this will disappoint some, part of me thought in places things could have gone into more detail. A few parts came over as being too convenient in occurrence and resolution. Perhaps there could have been less narration, which actually isn't that irritating or over-used but the film would have worked without it.However, 'The Descendants' is gorgeously shot, making the most of and clearly loving the picturesque Hawaiian locations and landscapes that makes one want to book a holiday there immediately. The use of traditional Hawaiian music on the soundtrack gave the film authenticity and added a lot to the mood of the story, especially in the more melancholic elements that are enhanced by it. Payne directs with his usual wit and warmth.Payne's script is a large part of 'The Descendants' success. There is a lot of poignant pathos that does give enough depth to the melancholic element of the story, but it is balanced beautifully with a sincere honesty, thoughtfulness, glowing warmth and humorous comic elements.Admittedly the story is deliberate and it's not the most insightful or breaking-new-ground there is, but the sympathetic tackling of the heavy and complicated personal themes really strikes an emotional chord and the warmth and gentle tone make it interesting. The characters are written well and the father and daughter relationship has a lot of heart and one of the film's biggest strengths. George Clooney gives one of his finest performances in a challenging role that he brings a lot of layers to. The performance of Shailene Woodley is similarly among the year's best yet criminally overlooked, a very heartfelt, engaging and beyond her years turn. The rest of the cast are just as affecting (particularly Judy Greer and Beau Bridges), while there's welcome levity from Nick Krause, as one of the more rounded supporting characters, and a surprisingly good Matthew Lillard (was expecting him to jar seeing as he tends to play goofballs yet here in a less likeable role in a gentle drama).Overall, very good and could have been great with just a few tweaks. 8/10 Bethany Cox

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Fallen Eye
2011/11/25

A very authentic film, that evokes on numerous occasions, conflicting and vacillating emotions. At one point The Descendants was sitting at a solid 5/10 for me, but then when it was all said and done, after all the goodbyes and apologies, ultimately the film hit a well deserved 7.3/10.It dealt with matters that I hadn't really seen in a motion picture before, while simultaneously running another story, of love, in such a special manner; in that, The Descendants created a dialogue between itself and the viewer.Matt was a comprehensible character, that was dealing with many conflicting emotions as best he could. Alex was a testing character, but also ultimately understandable. Sid... Oh Sid, a very vexatious character, that you end up perhaps, hating to love.Alexander Payne had a fairly excellent stab at depicting these characters that fluctuate so often, emotionally and logically. The conclusion to all the moving parts in their different directions was quite satisfactory also.The Descendants was more than decent, and descended and ascended as erratically, though understandably, as the Pacific waves surrounding Hawaii.

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