his alcoholic, irascible father on a quest for the million dollars
the old man thinks he won.
Directed by Alexander
Payne Starring – Bruce Dern, Will Forte, Stacy Keach
Why I
Liked It – A movie about fathers and sons, a life without joy, and
the lure of big money.
I wasn’t sure what I was
getting into with this movie. Shot in black and white with a
grim sounding story, it felt like a movie I “ought to watch”
rather than one I wanted to watch.
It turned out to be
both.
Alexander Payne does a great job of bringing an
indie movie feel to big studio movies. This movie is all about
the characters. The story is straightforward. Woody
(Dern) believes he’s won a million-dollar prize. His son David
(Forte) thinks his father is a life-long drunk who teeters at the
edge of dementia. But dad is determined to claim his money, so
David agrees to drive him from Montana to Nebraska. In many
ways, the trip is unimportant. It’s what happens between David
and Woody, and how that affects the rest of their family.
There’s
a lot to like here, but I want to a moment to note the soundtrack.
Composed by Mark Orton, a member of the acoustic chamber music group
Tin Hat. It is compelling, beautiful and perfect for the
movie. Just gorgeous.
The movie begins in the grim,
gritty reality I expected. The farther into the movie you get
the more you realize there’s so much more there. David
discovers things about both his father and his mother that he never
knew. Dern is brilliant as he checks all the boxes in Woody’s
complicated personality. Meanwhile, Forte is equally wonderful
as the son who thinks this will be an annoying but simple job.
You want the realization of all the complexities dawn slowly on
David. June Squibb earned an Oscar nomination for her work as Woody’s
wife/David’s mom. She takes you deeper and deeper into a
certain corner with Kate, only to whip around and reveal show
you something different. Bob Odenkirk does really well in a
small role as David’s brother Ross. The brothers have lost each
other, and what brings them back together is funny and
poignant.
Those are two great words to describe this movie
– poignant and funny. It’s never laugh out loud funny, but it
brought a smile to my face repeatedly. I had the same reaction
to Payne’s previous movie “The Descendents”. Both
turned out to be wonderful surprises.
There’s another
great phrase for this movie, a wonderful surprise.
Rating
– **** Recommended
Stories Are My Life 
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