In his first film since the Oscar-winning Sideways, writer-director Alexander Payne once again proves himself a master of the kind of smart, sharp, deeply felt comedy that was once the hallmark of Billy Wilder and Jean Renoir.
Based on the bestselling novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings, The Descendants stars George Clooney as Matt King, the heir of a prominent Hawaiian land-owning family whose life is turned upside-down when his wife is critically injured in a boating accident.
Accustomed to being “the back-up parent,” King suddenly finds himself center stage in the lives of his two young daughters (excellent newcomers Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller), while at the same time being forced to decide the fate of a vast plot of unspoiled land his family has owned since the 1860s.
Rooted in Clooney’s beautifully understated performance, Payne’s film is an uncommonly perceptive portrait of marriage, family and community, suffused with humor and tragedy and wrapped in a warm human glow. --NYFF
Cast: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Beau Bridges, Judy Greer, Matthew Lillard, Robert Forster, Rob Huebel, Michael Ontkean, Mary Birdsong, Nick Krause, Amara Miller, Patricia Hastie, Matt Corboy
Toronto (Special Presentations), New York, Telluride, London (Galas & Special Screenings), Chicago, Rotterdam (Spectrum), Göteborg (Gala), !F Istanbul (Hit Films)
About this movie
Title: The Descendants (2011)
Directed by: Alexander Payne
Date of birth: February 10, 1961, Omaha, Nebraska, United States
Writing credits: Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor, Kaui Hart Hemmings, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash
Year: 2011
Country: United States
Language: English
Color: Color
Runtime: 115 min.