Cinema847 entries
The Descendants
Released: 27/01/2012
General release
Sideways director Alexander Payne's adaptation of Kaui Hart Hemming's novel pits George Clooney as a workaholic, Honolulu-based attorney, forced to re-examine the meaning of family after his wife becomes comatose during a boating accident. Toeing the line between humor and grief, The Descendants is a raw exposure of the messy and moving moments in life.
For more information visit: http://www.thedescendants.co.uk/ Buy: http://myvue.com/latest-movies/info/film/the-descendantsPage [1]
60%
The Telegraph“The most complex character in The Descendants is Hawaii itself...” Perhaps it’s the prominence of the young cast and the tropical setting that make this film feel lighter and less substantial than Payne’s earlier work, and its structure and script issues don’t help its case either...
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80 %
Evening Standard“Has all the satisfactions of a story well told...” It's involving, funny and thought-provoking. Compared with most Hollywood films, thoroughly grown-up, you might even say...
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100%
Radio Times“Warm, subtle and gentle...” The Descendants demonstrates what can happen when indie talent is nurtured to mainstream success...
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70 %
Film4“Feels more manipulative than Payne's previous work...” A reasonably well-observed tragi-comedy, but not up to Payne's usual standards. Worth seeing for the outstanding performances from George Clooney and Shailene Woodley - and a great advert for Hawaii...
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60%
The Independent“There's a slight clunk of sitcom predictability...” It is intelligent, and humane, and pretty likeable; it isn't special, though, and that's what you hope and expect an Alexander Payne movie to be...
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80 %
Empire“A marvellous follow-up to 2004’s Sideways — well worth the wait... ” There are few filmmakers out there as incisively and entertainingly intelligent as Alexander Payne, and he makes few films. So The Descendants is something to be cherished...
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60%
Guardian“Distinctly soft-centred, lenient and sentimental...” Alexander Payne has toned down his masculinity-crisis shtick, and lost something in the process...
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60%
Time Out“Payne just misses despite some nifty work en route...” The characterisation never feels deep enough and he struggles to rein in the comic moments so they don’t jar with the core of the story...
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80 %
Total Film “The cast is exemplary, down to the smallest role...” A wryly compassionate vision of human fallibility that occasionally threatens to slip off-track, but is anchored by one of Clooney’s strongest performances...
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80 %
Little White Lies“Worth the wait...” A confident return to the feature filmmaking fold from Payne, and another champagne turn from a Hollywood icon refusing to age anything but gracefully...
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