Review No.9: The Descendants

Awards season fever hits again in the next film as we look at the movie that one best drama at last week's Golden Globes awards I'm talking about Alexander Payne's The Descendants. The film stars George Clooney as Matt King a lawyer and the sole trustee of 25,000 acres of land on the Hawaiian island of Kaua'i which has been in his family for generations. Matt now has to sell the land as the trust expires in seven years and the main bidder is a native to the island who promises to keep the land for the Hawaiians. The opening scene also sees Matt's wife Elizabeth involved in a motorboat accident and fall into a coma meaning he has to look after their oddball ten year old daughter Scottie. Seeking help Matt travels to the mainland to find his older daughter Alex who is currently in an institution due to her reliance on drink, drugs and relationships with older men. Alex reveals to Matt that Elizabeth had been cheating on him and later on he finds out that she was about to leave him due to the fact he put work before his family. The rest of the film sees Matt trying to deal with looking after his two daughters as well as finding his wife's lover and selling his family's land.

It is fair to say that Alexander Payne specalises in films about sadsack men who are at a crossroads in their life whether that be Miles in Sideways or Warren in About Schmidt. Matt King is no different to these men a man who is forced to step up after years of being the back-up parent he has to deal with emotional issues and two difficult daughters. Key to the film is George Clooney who for once isn't playing the smooth charmer that we've seen in everything from Ocean's 11 to The Ides of March instead Matt is much more of an introvert constantly struggling to do the right thing whether that be at home or in his dealings with his family's land. Shailene Woodley also deserves a mention for playing the troubled Alex a character who initially seems like she'll be the stereotypical tearaway teen but becomes a lot more than that and I applaud an actress as young as Woodley to give such a multi-layered performance. I'd have to say that The Descendants is the first film that I've watched that's kept my attention from beginning to end thanks to the great direction, script, cast and even the Hawaiian location which offer both sunshine and harsh weather to reflect the mood of the characters. It was only after I'd finished that I'd started to pick holes in some of the characters and thought the ending really didn't solve a lot of the problems that Matt and his family had faced but then again life doesn't always just end perfectly and maybe that was Payne's point.

Verdict: For the film that kept me hooked from beginning to end and the one that will no doubt win Clooney his Oscar I'll give it 8.5/10