Synopsis: From the celebrated director of Sideways (Alexander Payne) comes a wonderfully warm and witty film that Rolling Stone calls “damn near perfect.” Academy Award winner “George Clooney leads the ensemble cast of year” (Chicago Tribune).

Experience a bittersweet drama about a detached father’s attempt to reconnect with his two daughters and their often-hilarious quest for the truth.
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The Descendants 8.25

“I don’t want my daughters growing up entitled and spoiled. And I agree with my father: you give your children enough money to do something, but not enough to do nothing.”

…

Hmmm. It’s funny how some movies can touch you, and yet, leave you speechless. Sometimes it’s as if all that there is to say has been said by the film itself, leaving not much more for a commentator to add.

Such is the case with ‘The Descendants’ for me.

It’s the story of a man whose personal life is bowled over by an accident that has left his wife in a coma. Suddenly saddled with his two troubled daughters, gutted with grief and carrying massive responsibilities, he is trying to maintain his composure and his dignity in the face of a raging inner storm.

Overall, it’s a well-written piece, even though I thought that some of the dialogue felt stilted (case-in-point, Matt’s goodbye to Elizabeth), it serves up strong performances all around (with the minor exception of Matthew Lillard – who was good, but not exactly on par with the others), and the pacing was near-perfect.

So why don’t I have much more to say about it? I suppose it’s because it hasn’t left a significant enough mark on me, despite coming in at the top of my list of films that I’ve seen this year (so far ); I know that I thoroughly enjoyed watching it, but it’s all one big blur for some reason.

As could be expected, I adored George Clooney. The dynamic between his character and his daughters appeared very real to me; even though he’s a superstar and he can easily play cool and slick, he also knows how to play down-to-earth. However, there were a few moments that didn’t seem entirely convincing:

-It was strange that Clooney would allow his eldest daughter’s friend to tag along with them on their journey; Clooney seemed to want to control the situation but, for reasons unknown, he let this random element take hold. The guy was super annoying and it was almost unfathomable that he wasn’t kicked out of the car (I know I would have put my foot down! ). It was a nice touch, however, that he eventually ended up being an ally of sorts to Clooney. I enjoyed that.

-There was a scene where Clooney goes to talk to his daughter’s friend in the middle of the night. To me, it felt as unbelievable as it was awkward. I mean, why would he creep up on the kid like that? Why would he even want to talk to him after all the friction between them anyway? I just didn’t buy it.  Personally, in Clooney’s place, not only would I have dropped the kid early on but, at this point, I’d be avoiding him like the plague.

-Clooney’s reaction to Julie Speer’s outburst was unexpectedly cold and it came off as rejection. Frankly, I expected more sympathy from him. It might be because I’m a Clooney fan, and his characters are often (albeit not always) sympathetic in some way. Or, perhaps I can blame Hollywood clichés for these expectations – in which case this unconventional choice wasn’t a bad thing at all. Either way, it left me unsure of whether or not I should be aghast or amused.

Those issues aside, I quite enjoyed ‘The Descendants’. It can be a heavy film, but it has quite a number of amusing touches along the way, making it much easier to digest than a straight-forward drama would tend to be. Would I recommend it? Certainly. But mostly to fans of serious cinema, or family dramas – as this picture has no action or major momentum to speak of and is short on artifice. It’s for people who enjoy a relatively realistic portrayal of a slice of one man’s life.