Descendants rises above

The Descendants @ Arclight Hollywood

The Movie: 4 of 5 Kernels

Heart felt subtle approach to a series of complex issues with a series of nuanced and wonderfully realized performances against the mundanely exotic Hawaiian backdrop.

The Pop: 4 of 5 Kernels

Home brewed Coffee, Store bought M&M’s, Buttered Popcorn

The Film:

        Alexander Payne is undoubtedly a talented filmmaker who takes great care in exploring cultures and developing great characters who fall apart usually due to their subculture. In Election it was the school culture, Sideways was about oenophiles, and Descendants explores the suburban Hawaiian. The protagonists of his films are far from perfect and they struggle to make the right decision and to deal with the consequences of their bad decisions. Payne has been absent from the feature world for seven years, luckily he’s returned to the silver screen with a poignant tale that has lessons to teach everyone about how they treat the people and land around them.

The film starts with an image of Elizabeth King, her hair blown back by the speed of her vessel darting across the water looking serene and wonderful. The next time we see her she’s in a coma, as devoid of life as she was full of it. Matt King her husband juggles his wife’s health, his new role as single parent, and a significant land deal that will pay out huge sums of money to him and his cousins, but could hurt the local community. Matt discovers, from his oldest daughter, that Elizabeth was cheating on him. Matt finds out who the man was and he takes his daughter’s on a trip so he can see the man face to face, and give his wife’s lover the chance say good bye to her before she dies.

            The film’s plot bear many of the hallmarks of a soap opera, a dysfunctional family with a wealthy patriarch, a cheating wife, trouble daughters, family inheritance and even a giant land deal. However maybe because its based on a novel or maybe because the screenwriters wanted to take a mature melodrama free (light) approach, the film is anything but a soap opera. It’s a study of Hawaii, of human nature, and of relationships and their fleeting existence. There is a depth to the story it reaches for something bigger then itself and its aspirations pay off. The film’s strong individual elements truly come together to form something special.

            I give a ton of credit to Payne for the masterful film. I admit there were times I felt the movie dragged, but I would never wish for the movie to be paced differently. It lingers on faces and reactions, landscapes, and it’s lingering engages the viewer. The screenwriters also deserve kudos for taking such complex subjects and finding ways for the characters to embody and express the greater themes at play. The real tour de force though are the performances, each one a gem. Of course Clooney is great, its one of his finest performances, he weaves stoic, anger, sadness, with warmth, joy and that wry manic edge that Clooney does so well. Holding her own with him is Shailene Woodley as his daughter, Alexandra, she really does a lot of the heavy lifting and she manages to be both real and charming.

I know little about Hawaiian culture, but it was wonderfully edifying to see the place depicted as a place where people live and work, rather then just a back drop for vacations, cop shows and war movies. That vibe, that rich history, informs the film in a special way.

            This film may be obscured in the years end award push. It avoids the histrionics that usually get Academy Awards. The film is gentle, it does not stir the air with strum and vigor instead it sounds its mellow drum and invites you to soak in its vibes.

The Corn

I’ve become quite a coffee drinker over the past few years, and while I wouldn’t call myself a coffee snob, I’ve definitely gotten used to drinking good coffee. I recently wasn’t able to find the beans I wanted so I bought some alternate brand, big mistake. Luckily Cosco restocked their beans and I was able to get some delicious French Pressed coffee made. It’s an interesting pairing with popcorn and chocolate.