Review: The Descendants

Alexander’s film of deep family pain sees George Clooney play the character of Matt King – an affluent lawyer who is the trustee of his family-owned land. He is overseeing the sale of the family’s last piece of land as well as coping with the fact that his wife is in a coma, as a result of a Jet Ski accident. Now he must become sole parent to his daughters, Alexandra and Scottie played by Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller whilst dealing with a crushing revelation.
 
Payne’s films are comedies by nature, but one could argue they’re not particularly funny. Election (1999) stars Matthew Broderick as a frustrated middle-aged high school teacher who attempts to thwart the political career of one of his high-flying students. About Schmidt (2002) sees Jack Nicholson as a lonesome widower who does everything in his power to stop his daughter marrying a man he detests. The film Sideways (2004) tells the tale of two men who go away on a stag weekend with the best man finding love, whilst the groom enjoys his last bout of freedom. But if you watch them from a different angle, it begins to dawn on you that there is humour in places you least expect there to be. The same could be said for The Descendants which does not have a bust-a-gut-funny plot, but there are touching moments of comedy that stay with you long after the credits have rolled. Watch out for Clooney’s running scene - both mesmerising   and heartbreaking and the character of Sid, played by Nick Krause, who is my by far my favourite character. The sometimes boyfriend, sometimes friend of Alexandra at first appears to be a dim witted idiot of bad-timing jokes, but winds up being something more.

Clooney plays narrator as well as the main character of a father trying to find his way. He gives us a performance of much heart and exchanges his trademark wit and charm for unattractive Hawaiian shirts and humble tears. Here Clooney delivers his lines with sincerity and straightforward logic, we believe Matt as a man attempting to cope with this huge amount of emotional chaos.

 Based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings, the film gives Hawaii a modern and realistic representation. It shows audiences that this place is not just a “paradise” and a place where people come to holiday, but a place where everyday people work and live. Even though it is a supposed heaven, heartbreak and tragedy also has a place here.

Clooney is backed by two superb performances given by Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller who play his daughters; 17 year old Alexandra and 10 year old Scottie. Both of whom are dealing with their mother’s condition in very different ways. Artistic Scottie creates a disturbing yet unique photo album of her mother lying in her comatose state and sees it as an ideal show and tell piece at school (another slice of humour) whilst Alexandra finds comfort in drugs and alcohol. As the film progresses Clooney’s character who describes himself as the “backup parent” grows steadily close to his troublesome daughters with Alexandra eventually becoming a sort of surrogate parent figure to Scottie. Although her alcohol and substance issues are suddenly resolved with some feeling that perhaps it deserved more screen time, as it’s such a popular issue among young adults. Also watch out for memorable appearances by Beau Bridges as Matt’s cousin and Matthew Lillard as his rival.

The film has garnered much box office success, even beating Spielberg’s War Horse. It has recently been awarded two Golden Globes for Best Motion Picture (Drama) and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role. It’s also been nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Motion Picture of The Year and Best Actor in A Leading Role and three BAFTA awards.

There are many directors who believe it necessary to walk their audience through the narrative, assuming them to have no initiative of their own. The Descendants does nothing of the sort with Payne delivering to us an intelligent and punchy film.

The Descendants is showing at hmvcurzon, to book tickets visit the website at www.hmvcurzon.com
hmvcurzon, 23 The Broadway, Wimbledon, London, SW19 1RE