The Descendants
Composite Score: 86.24
Starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Amara Miller, Nick Krause, Beau Bridges, Mary Birdsong, Rob Heubel, Laird Hamilton, Matthew Lillard, Judy Greer, and Robert Forster
Director: Alexander Payne
Writers: Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, and Jim Rash
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Dark Comedy
MPAA Rating: R for language including some sexual references
Box Office: $177.24 million worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
The Descendants is the film adaptation from director Alexander Payne and his cowriters Nat Faxon and Jim Rash of Kaui Hart Hemmings’s novel of the same name about a Hawaiian lawyer, descended from Hawaiian royalty and white missionaries, whose mundane life is upended when his wife falls into a coma following a boating accident. The film stars George Clooney in the leading role of Matt King, joined by Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller as his daughters Alexandra and Scottie, Nick Krause as Alexandra’s friend Sid, Robert Forster as Matt’s father-in-law Scott, and Beau Bridges as Matt’s cousin Hugh. In addition to having to deal with his wife’s decision in her living will to be taken off of life support, Matt is also the sole trustee of his extended family’s trust of 25,000 acres of undeveloped land in Hawaii that’s due to have its trust dissolved in seven years. Compounding all of this is the revelation that his wife had been carrying on an affair for some time with a man that she seemingly loved more than she ever loved Matt, and it all starts to become a bit too much for one man to handle, leading him to rely on his oldest daughter and her friend to help him bring some closure to the many crises in his life. The film explores the colonization of Hawaii and the current living situation of native Hawaiians while also taking a direct examination at the grieving process and the complexities of truly knowing someone. It received Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Clooney), and Best Editing and a win for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
For some, the film might not go far enough in exploring its supplementary themes about the history and people of Hawaii, either going entirely unnoticed because those aren’t issues that they’re already aware of or feeling half-hearted because the character that’s the driving force behind the theme is a descendant of colonizers. Regardless, the subtheme, while engaging if you know what’s going on, can feel a bit too shallow to make it a full film. This will then result in a semi-dark dramedy about grief, which has been done time and again, meaning the only real reasons for everyone to watch the film are the dialogue and the performances of the actors, which may or may not be your cup of tea. If you do go in for the Hawaiian themes, though the film does feel pretty rich and full of character, so it really just depends on how you take it.
So wait, why should you Watch This Film?
In all seriousness, though, it is the script and performances that make this film as great as it is. The writing gives depth and nuance to every character, showcasing the humanity at the heart of each person, the good with the bad and vice versa. It’s full of some legitimately funny jokes that bring you out of the film’s mournful aura for a few seconds before plunging you back in, reflecting the reality of life during grief in that way. The decisions that characters make feel just as half-thought-out as most decisions that you and I make on a daily basis, and it results in plenty of messy situations and opportunities for growth and positive choices. Ultimately, we’re given a film that focuses on grief and processing while mirroring our own quirks back at us, flavored with some anti-colonial and anti-tourism subtext.
With the great script come some solid performances from the supporting cast. Amara Miller does a good job as an unhinged ten-year-old, never shying away from her realistic shenanigans. Robert Forster, though limited in his screentime, plays Elizabeth’s father with a memorable blend of overbearing expectation and loving sadness. Shailene Woodley gives what is probably far and away her best performance as Matt’s teenage daughter Alex, holding her own with Clooney, presenting an authentic look at a teen processing more than she should ever have to at her age, and even offering some light comedy in places – given how her career has been outside of this film, it’s almost disappointing how good she is. It’s Clooney, though, who carries the film, giving what is, for me, a top-five career performance as a man trying to hold everything together, balancing his immediate family’s needs with his extended family’s expectations all while trying to process his own feelings about what’s going on. It’s a performance that showcases Clooney’s humanity so much more than his star power, and it’s a pleasant reminder that the man can indeed act and showcase real human emotion.
Thanks to the standout cast, led by George Clooney, and a rich script full of character, theme, and story, The Descendants manages to take its premise of a film about grief in paradise and turn it into a film worthy of a place among the greats. The Hawaii subplot might not be what every audience is looking for, but, as a background plot, it does give more weight to the film as a whole, showcasing the collective processing of grief that communities undergo and the interests that seek to end it prematurely. If you’d like to check this film out, you can currently stream it on Hulu.
