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From Amazon.co.uk
Only Oscar-winning writer-director Alexander Payne (Sideways) would think to cast the famously handsome George Clooney as a dishevelled dad in his outstanding adaptation of Kaui Hart Hemmings's tragicomic novel. Clooney dials down the glamour to play Matt King, a Hawaii real-estate attorney with a propensity for unflattering shirts and ill-fitting trousers. When Matt's wife, Elizabeth, ends up in a coma after a water-skiing accident, Matt must learn to balance the parenting of his resentful daughters, Scottie (Amara Miller) and Alexandra (Shailene Woodley, The Secret Life of the American Teenager), with the sale of a pristine plot of Kauai land that stands to make the King cousins, including scruffy Hugh (Beau Bridges), a fortune. As Elizabeth's condition worsens, Matt contacts friends and relatives, like her fiercely protective father (Robert Forster), so that they'll have the chance to say goodbye. In the process, he finds out she was having an affair with realtor Brian Speer (Matthew Lillard, effectively cast against type), so he and the girls, including Alex's hilariously mellow friend, Sid (Nick Krause), go on an island-hopping trip, ostensibly to add Brian to the mix, but Matt really wants to find out what his wife saw in the guy. His journey from naiveté to knowledge brings out Clooney's soulful side, creating a believably flawed, deeply sympathetic figure. If Payne leans too heavily on the slack-key soundtrack, his love for his characters, including Judy Greer as Matt's female counterpart, results in his most emotionally satisfying movie to date. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Product Description
From Alexander Payne, the celebrated director of Sideways, comes Oscar®-winning film that Rolling Stone calls “damn near perfect.” Academy Award® winner George Clooney “gives his best performance to date” (Philip French, The Observer) and newcomer “Shailene Woodley shines” (Total Film). Experience a bittersweet drama about a detached father’s attempt to reconnect with his two daughters and their often-hilarious quest for the truth in this “beautifully observed and brilliantly acted comedy drama” (Sunday Express).
Special Features:
Special Features:
- Eight featurettes including: Everybody Loves George, A Conversation with George Clooney and Alexander Payne, The Real Descendants
- Deleted scenes with director introductions
- Three music videos
- The World Parade--Hawaii (A Silent Film)
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This pleasant movie is made interesting by George Clooney's performance as a Hawaiian lawyer who, as head of a family trust, is considering a plan to sell a perfect, unspoiled part of the state to a big developer. Just about all his cousins want the deal; they'll get a lot of money. But his wife has an accident and now is on life support. He has to learn how to be a parent to his young daughters. And then to learn to live knowing that his wife was sleeping around with a real estate agent and had plans to divorce him.
Not much on the politics of family financial tugging but a lot on one family learning how to live with each other. Clooney keeps it from becoming a daytime soap serial. The self-discovery portions (there's a lot of them) are mostly wry and often affecting. No big-time movie star aura from Clooney and he's not afraid to make his character (and himself) look a bit silly at times.
Not much on the politics of family financial tugging but a lot on one family learning how to live with each other. Clooney keeps it from becoming a daytime soap serial. The self-discovery portions (there's a lot of them) are mostly wry and often affecting. No big-time movie star aura from Clooney and he's not afraid to make his character (and himself) look a bit silly at times.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Albatross
Format:DVD
George Clooney puts his heart on the line in this one, as a land baron who's forced to stop concentrating on his work when his wife suffers a critical accident, leaving her in a coma in the hospital. Therefore George must look after his two daughters, both who are going through various stages of adolescence.
It's good to see someone normally as suave as Mr Clooney, looking pretty out of his depth with two young girls and he pulls it off well. Despite having plenty of adult themes running through it - death, adultery, family in-fighting - it's actually quite a nice film with a decent message about family values.
It's not hilarious, but then it doesn't try to be. Just enjoy it for a gentle ride of good humour.
It's good to see someone normally as suave as Mr Clooney, looking pretty out of his depth with two young girls and he pulls it off well. Despite having plenty of adult themes running through it - death, adultery, family in-fighting - it's actually quite a nice film with a decent message about family values.
It's not hilarious, but then it doesn't try to be. Just enjoy it for a gentle ride of good humour.
27 of 32 people found the following review helpful
By L. Power
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:DVD
Director Alexander Payne has previously directed high quality movies such as Election [1999] [DVD]starring Reese Witherspoon, About Schmidt [DVD] [2003] starring Jack Nicholson, and Sideways [DVD] (Widescreen Edition) starring Paul Giamatti, nominated for five Oscars winning one.
Gregory Peck once said it's hard to make a good man look interesting.
You can probably imagine in a cinematic world peopled with antiheroes, flawed heroes, or unrealistic superheroes, how refreshing it might be, to encounter a good guy we can relate to, in situations that parallel those we might actually experience.
George Clooney plays Matt King, a lawyer, businessman, and hardworking mostly absent father of two girls. He happens to be wealthy because of his descent from the original landowners of Hawaii, the real Hawaiians, who own most of Hawaii. Sole trustee of the family's interests, and now because of succession rules faced with the situation of having to sell off thousands of acres of pristine land to resort developers. Despite his family wealth Doug leads a very modest life. He drives a metallic silver Honda Civic, a sensible car.
When his thrillseeking wife ends up in a coma following a powerboating accident, he is thrust into the unfamiliar role of looking after his two daughters each bringing their own challenges. The younger one has difficulties in school, the older one, well, she's a teenager.
We learn early in the movie that the wife had an affair, making a difficult situation even worse.... Read more ›
Gregory Peck once said it's hard to make a good man look interesting.
You can probably imagine in a cinematic world peopled with antiheroes, flawed heroes, or unrealistic superheroes, how refreshing it might be, to encounter a good guy we can relate to, in situations that parallel those we might actually experience.
George Clooney plays Matt King, a lawyer, businessman, and hardworking mostly absent father of two girls. He happens to be wealthy because of his descent from the original landowners of Hawaii, the real Hawaiians, who own most of Hawaii. Sole trustee of the family's interests, and now because of succession rules faced with the situation of having to sell off thousands of acres of pristine land to resort developers. Despite his family wealth Doug leads a very modest life. He drives a metallic silver Honda Civic, a sensible car.
When his thrillseeking wife ends up in a coma following a powerboating accident, he is thrust into the unfamiliar role of looking after his two daughters each bringing their own challenges. The younger one has difficulties in school, the older one, well, she's a teenager.
We learn early in the movie that the wife had an affair, making a difficult situation even worse.... Read more ›
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Rob Simpson
Format:DVD
If it takes Alexander Payne five years to come out with a film this good, he can all the time in the world. It is soft, gentle and lacking that edge, there are also problems with the script. Despite that, George Clooney makes this movie with the performance of his career, as a man plagued by obligation and grief.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By P. Haynes
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I didn't know what to expect with this film, but the newspaper reviews were good, and I like George Clooney, so I took a chance, and I wasn't disappointed.
It's a slightly off-beat film/story, with interseting characters (who develop nicely - and in at least one case, surprisingly - as the film progresses), and Clooney is very good. I never know what to expect with Clooney, but this is one of his better films - the lead role could have been overacted quite easily, but Clooney does it just right.
Both my wife and I liked it, which is unusual, as we have quite different tastes. If you like intelligent films, try it, you won't be disappointed.
NB: Only 4 stars in no way suggests anything wrong with the film, I just like to reserve 5 stars for really good films.
It's a slightly off-beat film/story, with interseting characters (who develop nicely - and in at least one case, surprisingly - as the film progresses), and Clooney is very good. I never know what to expect with Clooney, but this is one of his better films - the lead role could have been overacted quite easily, but Clooney does it just right.
Both my wife and I liked it, which is unusual, as we have quite different tastes. If you like intelligent films, try it, you won't be disappointed.
NB: Only 4 stars in no way suggests anything wrong with the film, I just like to reserve 5 stars for really good films.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Campobello
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
This film has won several Academy and Golden Globe awards, so this must be a good film, right? Well, that depends on which of the three categories of people you fall into.
This is not a film with a plot that is action packed. In fact, the film covers just few days following a fatal accident by the wife of George Clooney's protagonist, and how he and his family copes with the tragedy. Just like in a real life, there is not much drama for the most part. But once in a while, life challenges you to live up to be who you really are. Like, dealing with the hostility of your father-in-law, dealing with a repugnant boyfriend of your teenage daughter, and dealing with the revelation of your wife's infidelity from your daughter just when you are up to your neck with coping with your wife's impending death. At heart, this film is about a man who, through the tragedy of losing his wife, comes around to taking responsibility as a father and keeping his family from breaking apart. Clooney is brilliant as ever, but a major surprise was to see a newcomer, Shailene Woodley, playing a teenage daughter who, over the course of this film, grows up and be supportive of her father in coping with the events as they unfolded. Reminiscent of Debra Winger in her early years, this young actress is to be watched in future films. It was also a delight to see Judy Greer, whom I first noticed in Three Kings and What Women Wants; it is a mystery why she has remained underappreciated for a long time, as her acting has always been memorable despite being minor roles.
So, if you are one of these fortunate people who have no problems in life, and are just looking for a couple of hours of entertainment, then this film may let you down badly.... Read more ›
This is not a film with a plot that is action packed. In fact, the film covers just few days following a fatal accident by the wife of George Clooney's protagonist, and how he and his family copes with the tragedy. Just like in a real life, there is not much drama for the most part. But once in a while, life challenges you to live up to be who you really are. Like, dealing with the hostility of your father-in-law, dealing with a repugnant boyfriend of your teenage daughter, and dealing with the revelation of your wife's infidelity from your daughter just when you are up to your neck with coping with your wife's impending death. At heart, this film is about a man who, through the tragedy of losing his wife, comes around to taking responsibility as a father and keeping his family from breaking apart. Clooney is brilliant as ever, but a major surprise was to see a newcomer, Shailene Woodley, playing a teenage daughter who, over the course of this film, grows up and be supportive of her father in coping with the events as they unfolded. Reminiscent of Debra Winger in her early years, this young actress is to be watched in future films. It was also a delight to see Judy Greer, whom I first noticed in Three Kings and What Women Wants; it is a mystery why she has remained underappreciated for a long time, as her acting has always been memorable despite being minor roles.
So, if you are one of these fortunate people who have no problems in life, and are just looking for a couple of hours of entertainment, then this film may let you down badly.... Read more ›
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3.8 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
I found a film I had been trying to get
If you are a George Clooney fan you are in for a treat! the blu-ray is very good and the film will be treasured it was delivered very quickly
Published 1 day ago by Alan Murphy
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great but....
I really enjoyed this film and I would have given it 5 stars but for the fact that the 'F' work was used, totally unnecessarily, too often. Read more
Published 7 days ago by I. Perry
2.0 out of 5 stars
Well acted but very dull
I would not go as far as to say that film is tedious but i did struggle to stay awake from about half way through. Read more
Published 8 days ago by Fraz
5.0 out of 5 stars
A film for lovers of good acting - not special effects.
It's a refreshing change to find a film that puts into words what many of us think about adulterous spouses, Matt Kings wife, Joanie, is in coma after a boating accident and as the... Read more
Published 9 days ago by DaveA
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Descendants
Not bad but little disapppointing I thought it would be better than it was. The build up sounded better on the television
Published 25 days ago by Mrs Gabrielle Brumby
4.0 out of 5 stars
I would give this 4 and a half stars if it was an option
A 'Five Star Rating System' has got to be the most moronic way of reviewing anything that can be considered art, because it's all a matter of taste. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Michael Carl Fisher
5.0 out of 5 stars
dvd revue.
i love this movie;and george clooney was fantastic in it.it was very well priced by amazon and you should just buy it if your a clooney fan.
Published 1 month ago by blueboy
5.0 out of 5 stars
Want action? Want excitement???
Well, look somewhere else, this isn't it. But want a beautifully-crafted film with excellent acting and a quiet, interesting, involving character study? Look no further. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Teemacs
5.0 out of 5 stars
Oscar worthy indeed....
Despite the concept of this film - it has you laughing out loud in places just as much as you cry in others. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Katie
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great film
Watched this film last night with my husband and we found it really moving. Really very good. Defy you not to shed a tear or two.
Published 2 months ago by davillia
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