Nebraska

Alexander Payne's return to the screen is a remarkable independent film about nothing more than the dysfunction of family and a son's futile attempt to bond with his ailing father before it's too late. Nominated for 6 Oscars, including Best Actor, Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress, Best Original Story, and Best Cinematography, Nebraska is hands-down the surprise of the awards season. It is the last film to check off my list, so my seasonal film spree ends on a happy note.

This is Payne's first film since the critically acclaimed The Descendants in 2011, which won him his second Best Writing of an Adapted Screenplay Oscar. Although Nebraska likely won't win any of the awards it is nominated for, it is a refreshingly simple story, shot in black and white with some truly beautiful middle-America scenery and delightfully quirky musical accompaniment.

Bruce Dern plays Woody, a retired alcoholic mechanic in the early stages of Alzheimer's. He receives a sweepstakes letter in the mail, and he adamantly insists that he is going from his home in Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska to claim his million dollar prize. Inevitably, his two frustrated sons and his nagging wife humor him and a family adventure ensues, including a stop in a sleepy little town where his long forgotten past and his brothers still live. Along the way, his son (Will Forte) learns a lot more about his dad than he bargained for, and receives some of the bonding that he desperately wanted before his father's health declines beyond the point of no return.

Dern's performance as a cantankerous old codger is right up the alley of an almost 80 year old veteran. Grow his hair out, don't shave for awhile, and shuffle around and play forgetful and careless. At a glance, he's the perfect role, and he handles it like a pro. Is he worthy of a Best Actor Oscar nomination? Maybe not. I would take him off the board first, replacing him with either Tom Hanks, Joaquin Phoenix (Her), or Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis). It's a ripe role, and he does fine, but it could have been better.

Will Forte isn't given enough credit for his role in this film. The Saturday Night Live alumni has come a long way since MacGruber. He's picked up a couple of nominations throughout the awards season, but has mostly flown under the radar. Certainly an odd pick for the role, but he shows that he's more than just a joker. He conveys his love for his dad and his sadness and frustration in the helplessness of the situation simultaneously, and he is really the glue that holds the film together.

June Squib is the loud, blunt nagging wife who drives Woody to his last hurrah of an adventure. She is annoying, rude, and simply despicable. It adds a layer of viewer compassion for Woody and makes his crankiness seem almost justified.

Stacy Keach is the hometown rival of Woody, and Keach is a perfect fit for a good old boy who puts on the nice face, but deep down is just a mean-spirited country bumpkin. Old and battered, they rekindle their rivalry nearly sixty years later, and bring up secrets and grudges that should have been long ago put to bed. It's entertaining, but there is something quite depressing about their interactions. But, I suppose that's Alexander Payne's wheelhouse.

The writing is pretty standard in the realm of family dramedies. There is an arc to the story that builds around family relationship and some growth and bonding, with a sad resolution that doesn't shy away from the reality of the characters. There is a bit of satisfaction in the end however, in that the characters experienced something adventurous, even if they are slightly damaged in the end. Payne is no stranger to this approach, and audiences eat it up. He did it with Sideways and The Descendants, and does it again with Nebraska. Audiences want to see flawed individuals in uncomfortably familiar situations, and dialogue that pokes and prods at social conformity. Payne accomplishes this with the help of writer Bob Nelson. Much of the dialogue seems staged, but it doesn't really matter because it is so simple in its delivery. This film wouldn't have been the same had it not been shot in black and white, I honestly believe this. The cinematography and direction would be average in the eyes of critics, and the actors would be lost in a sea of better than average performances. It was a brilliant move spearheaded by a critical darling in Alexander Payne.

Nebraska is something different that is set in nostalgia while being real and reflective of truth at the same time. Everyone has to deal with aging parents someday, and I just hope when my time comes, that mine aren't anything like Woody and Kate Grant. 7/10.