31 Days, 31 Films
Submitted by Sarah D. Bunting on November 29, 2011 – 12:13 PM9 Comments
…Because we’re stupid, that’s why.
Okay, seriously: Couch Baron and I decided each to write up one film for every day in December. For him, it’s a way to get a jump on Oscar season; for me, it’s partly that, and getting a jump on Oscars Death Race, but also a way to thin the Netflix herd just a bit. He’ll focus almost exclusively on 2011 theatrical releases, while I’ll have some vintage, kung-fu, and Crushed Film Festival nonsense mixed into my list.
You can read CB’s intro here, and follow him on Twitter at @couchbaron for the latest updates. Otherwise, watch this space starting 1 December. Here’s a sneak preview from both sites: The Descendants IS TERRIBLE.
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Tags: 31 Days 31 Films Couch Baron masochism movies Oscars 2012 Death Race The Crushed Film Festival The Descendants
[…] decided to get a jump on her new Death Race and do the same (not necessarily with the same movies) over on Tomato Nation. I have gotten started on seeing the films since I decided to do this a week ago, as trying to see […]
I cannot wait to find out why The Descendants is terrible. It looks awful to me, in a not-my-cup-of-tea sort of way, and I need validation in the face of…well, the Clooney Sigh Machine.
Seriously looking forward to this!
Also: I keep confusing “The Descendants” with “The Descent”. Am I a bad person?
Ah, shoot. I was going to go see The Decendants today, too.
Guess it’s My Week With Marilyn, instead (has my boy Branagh, so it can’t be a complete waste. He’s playing Laurence Olivier, y’all!)
I’ll speak up for The Decendants. I thought it and Clooney were really good. I wasn’t sure I’d believe him as a dad but I did. Is it something that I’ll watch over and over again? No. But I’m glad I saw it.
I liked The Descendants too. I don’t get whay it’s being treated as Oscar bait though, it was good but not great. The teenage daughter’s idiot boyfriend was great.
I’ll also speak up for The Descendants, though I’m curious as to why you thought it was terrible. It did depict life in Hawaii in a very realistic fashion, which I really liked.
My review (I’ll try to avoid being too-spoilery, but: caveat lector.)
Having had a hospice sitch in my own life in the not-distant-enough past, The Descendants got the little details of that part of the story exactly as I remember it. The in-room whiteboard with DNR written on it? Check. The weird cheerfulness of the surroundings at odds with the awfulness of the patient’s situation? Check. And all of the say-goodbye bits were just as I remember them, too. I did not ‘enjoy’ that aspect, but I acknowledge Payne et al did right by it.
That said, if the whole property question was meant to be suspenseful, it was not. Telegraphed. Inevitable. Really, movie? The other plot was too sitcommy by half, and forced the family into contrivance after contrivance that, although the script tried to explain their plausibility for a family in that situation, was ultimately a failure.
That said, the scenery, most of the performances (Robert Forster! Awes!) and the dialogue, were better than not. (Exception: Beau Bridges, aka Poor Man’s The Dude. Wtf.)
I’ve tried to start my Oscar race early this year, too, but there are certain movies I’m waiting on, like The Help. I am actively rooting against Viola Davis getting a nomination so I never have to watch it. No offense to Ms. Davis.
I highly recommend Take Shelter if you haven’t seen that one yet.