This time for Clooney?
The Descendants is one of three films nominated in the Best Film category that revolves around the theme of death (the other two being The Tree Of Life and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close). Filmmaker Alexander Payne, who has given us such gems as About Schmidt and Sideways in the past, expertly deals with issues like infidelity, familial ties, estrangement, and coping mechanisms in The Descendants.
The film is about Matt King (George Clooney), a lawyer living in Honolulu, whose wife lands in a coma after a boating accident. Matt is the sole trustee of a family trust that controls 25,000 acres of land on an island called Kaua’i. He is saddled with looking after his two daughters, 17-year-old Alex (Shailene Woodley) and 10-year-old Scottie (Amara Miller), both of whom he’s kept a distance from for the longest time. The story takes a turn when Matt realises that his wife, now facing death, may have cheated on him.
Payne, while maintaining a sombre mood throughout, laces the film with dark humour. You empathise with Matt but can’t help laughing at many of his miseries. Many scenes bring a lump to your throat, while many others have you break into a smile, part-credit for which goes to some brilliant acting by Clooney, Miller and Woodley (who missed out on a Best Actress In A Supporting Role nomination).
If there is one thing you probably know about The Descendants already, it’s that Clooney has won a string of awards for Best Actor at various award ceremonies, making him a favourite to pick the Oscar too. Clooney, really, is marvellous, his body language and mannerisms not once straying away from character, but I’d pick his portrayal of Ryan Bingham in Up In The Air (for which he lost the Best Actor Oscar to Jeff Bridges for Crazy Heart two years ago) over The Descendants any day. However, experts feel this will be Clooney’s year, with the Academy wanting to reward him for having lost two other Best Actor nominations in a span of five years (Michael Clayton being the other one).
The film has four other major nominations (Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay and Editing). With The Artist also in the running for Best Picture and Director, The Descendants’ best chance would be to win one for Screenplay, apart from Best Actor.
The Descendants is one of three films nominated in the Best Film category that revolves around the theme of death (the other two being The Tree Of Life and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close). Filmmaker Alexander Payne, who has given us such gems as About Schmidt and Sideways in the past, expertly deals with issues like infidelity, familial ties, estrangement, and coping mechanisms in The Descendants.
The film is about Matt King (George Clooney), a lawyer living in Honolulu, whose wife lands in a coma after a boating accident. Matt is the sole trustee of a family trust that controls 25,000 acres of land on an island called Kaua’i. He is saddled with looking after his two daughters, 17-year-old Alex (Shailene Woodley) and 10-year-old Scottie (Amara Miller), both of whom he’s kept a distance from for the longest time. The story takes a turn when Matt realises that his wife, now facing death, may have cheated on him.
Payne, while maintaining a sombre mood throughout, laces the film with dark humour. You empathise with Matt but can’t help laughing at many of his miseries. Many scenes bring a lump to your throat, while many others have you break into a smile, part-credit for which goes to some brilliant acting by Clooney, Miller and Woodley (who missed out on a Best Actress In A Supporting Role nomination).
If there is one thing you probably know about The Descendants already, it’s that Clooney has won a string of awards for Best Actor at various award ceremonies, making him a favourite to pick the Oscar too. Clooney, really, is marvellous, his body language and mannerisms not once straying away from character, but I’d pick his portrayal of Ryan Bingham in Up In The Air (for which he lost the Best Actor Oscar to Jeff Bridges for Crazy Heart two years ago) over The Descendants any day. However, experts feel this will be Clooney’s year, with the Academy wanting to reward him for having lost two other Best Actor nominations in a span of five years (Michael Clayton being the other one).
The film has four other major nominations (Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay and Editing). With The Artist also in the running for Best Picture and Director, The Descendants’ best chance would be to win one for Screenplay, apart from Best Actor.
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