The Descendants Review
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The Descendants
Fox Searchlight
R 110 min
Another Academy Award nominee and yet another disappointment.
I really don’t like this new system of nominating ten flicks for best picture. It’s hard enough to find five worthy of a golden statue and now it seems there’s more leeway than ever to toss a bone to toss an honor to someone for political (witjhin the industry) or other reasons other than a great film.
I certainly didn’t dislike THE DESCENDANTS as badly as I did EATREMELY but despite a couple unconventional turns it just barely made it to the deep end of the mediocrity pool.
I’d expected a lot more too. SIDEWAYS was an offbeat gem and Clooney is powerful enough to refuse any weak script. Maybe he saw something in it that I didn’t. And maybe his stature in the industry drew more weight as to the nomination.
Here he’s Matt King, an attorney and the administrator of a trust that controls many acres of pristine Hawaiian property. It’s worth many millions to all of the family members who stand to split that up, but the final decision rests with him.
They are the descendants of one of the last members of Hawaii’s royal clan though none look like they have any Polynesian blood.
His troubles keeping the trustees happy are dwarfed by those involved with his family.
His wife, who he’s just found out has been unfaithful, is in a coma and about to die. It seems that everyone has been aware of that but him, but most importantly his oldest daughter who’s rebelling.
With his two daughters and the eldest’s surfer dude boyfriend Matt sets off to locate and confront his wife’s paramour.
I’ll admit there are some interesting twists and turns here but just not quite enough to ease the boredom and the lack of charisma all around.
Again this isn’t a terrible flick, just not up to what I think an Oscar winner should be. Nor is it up to what a mega star like Clooney should select and well short of the emotional catharsis this material might have had.
C+
WSS
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