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The Descendants - 28/1/2012 2:20:54 PM   
Empire Admin

 

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Post #: 1
Loved It - 28/1/2012 2:20:54 PM   
Bighousewill

 

Posts: 244
Joined: 5/12/2009
Great story nice acting brilliant characters The Descendants will linger in your thoughts making you realize what a good film it was possibly prompting you to see it again. Its a nice heartwarming film with comedy in the places you might least expect its funny and sad and heartwarming to sum it up.

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Post #: 2
it's awful!? - 29/1/2012 6:49:58 PM   
tysmuse

 

Posts: 256
Joined: 24/9/2007
So boring. Totally humourless. Naff story (is it about a bad dad and his kids? or the wife's affair? or the whole land sale? all and none). Made-for-TV direction. Lame script. And Clooney (who isn't bad) gets absolutely nothing to do. That he even got a nom for this role is astounding. To then go and win over Gosling or Fassbender is an affront of the highest order.

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Post #: 3
Surprised? I shouldn't be - 29/1/2012 10:06:17 PM   
jokerjoker2896

 

Posts: 4
Joined: 5/9/2008
I was nervous as I sat down in the cinema-I'm 15, I don't usually go and see these sorts of films at the cinema, but I'd heard good things , so i thought why not? Was not dissapointed. Some truly beautiful shots of Hawaii make a nice contrast to the emotional turmoil going on in the King family. The story was completely bittersweet, but with a lovely, understated pay off, and I don't think Clooney has ever been better. All supporting actors are also on form, and the scripting is very good. Its not quite as funy as it was made out (though Clooney's running WAS hilarious, if short-lived) so its a good thing then, that it did not always have to be funny. One qualm-although I loved Matt King's daughter Alex, and thought that she had been played excellently, I felt her transformation came too early on in the film to be truly affecting-but nontheless believable. Absolutely loved it!

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Post #: 4
RE: Surprised? I shouldn't be - 31/1/2012 10:30:43 AM   
Wild about Wilder


Posts: 1484
Joined: 9/4/2010
From: Hertfordshire
 Thought it was pretty good BUT NO SIDEWAYS also Clooney's no Giamatti & if he gets the Oscar it'll be a very poor showing this year.

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Post #: 5
RE: The Descendants - 31/1/2012 7:45:33 PM   
derbz

 

Posts: 2
Joined: 23/7/2010
This is undoubtably one of the best films that I've seen over the past year. The Cloon gives a fantastic, believable performance. This combined with a heartbreaking story and many, many sub stories such as Alex having to quickly grow up makes for a impeccable film.

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Post #: 6
RE: The Descendants - 2/2/2012 12:57:31 AM   
musht


Posts: 1136
Joined: 21/1/2009
From: Oireland
 A three-star four-star movie (if that makes any sense). Don't think it massively the deserves an of its award nominations, certainly not a better film than TTSS in my opinion but that's for another thread

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Post #: 7
The Disappointments - 2/2/2012 4:13:39 AM   
Mr. Anderson

 

Posts: 4
Joined: 2/2/2012
Don't get the oscar nods toward this at all? It's a decent film but not a great one. Clooney's acting is terrific but preferred him in Up In The Air(which was also a better film). I've given this three stars on the basis that the first hour is funny and it's enough to carry the film through in the end. But there's no emotional pay-off, anyone who's reduced to tears by this is probably pregnant or has some sort of real emotional issues going on here. I watched 50/50 recently and it was the funnier and more emotional of the two. It'll fill a night in but it's not oscar material. Why the likes of Drive, Warrior and even Source Code have been left out is beyond me?

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Post #: 8
RE: The Disappointments - 2/2/2012 1:29:53 PM   
m_er


Posts: 3913
Joined: 30/9/2005
From: Istanpool
 5/10 The Descendants: G. Clooney is in top form. The film’s entertaining, though unsatisfying. I was honestly expecting more from this. It’s overrated. Last year’s The Kids Are All Right was far better for me.

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Post #: 9
RE: The Descendants - 6/2/2012 5:14:44 AM   
spides


Posts: 26
Joined: 16/1/2007
From: Brisbane Australia
 I thought this was a decent movie, well acted, the eldest daughter I thought was excellent.
Certainly do not believe Clooney deserves an Oscar for this, not even close in my books.............personally Gary Oldman gets my nod for Tinker Tailor for the Oscar over Clooney

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Post #: 10
OSCAR BAIT..... - 6/2/2012 7:01:13 PM   
ROTGUT

 

Posts: 291
Joined: 14/7/2008
....of the highest order. Gorgeous George as a harrassed father of two....who's wife is cheating on him?????Get the fuck outta here!!!! This lame soap opera is nothing but mawkish, manipulative, hollywood tosh - and how it's raking in all these glowing reviews is beyond me - and I loved Sideways!!! Laugh? I never even started. Heart warming? I must have a heart of stone because I was wishing that a friggin tsunami would just arrive and wipe out the whole lot of them! And where were the natives? The REAL Hawaiians? All I saw were a bunch of pampered stinking rich yanks bleating on about how awful their lives were - just because their swimming pools were a bit dirty..... FUUUCCKKK......Why did I waste my money on this dreck!!!!
ONE STAR!!!!

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Post #: 11
RE: OSCAR BAIT..... - 6/2/2012 9:09:35 PM   
Qwerty Norris


Posts: 3150
Joined: 26/10/2005
From: Edinburgh
 Never hits the dizzy heights of Sideways, but in fairness, I suspect Alexander Payne will struggle to ever top that effort of eights ago. Still, good to see him back with another drama seeped in melancholy yet not immune from the odd giggle. Clooney is great as the father figure struggling to keep it together whilst everything around him falls apart, whereas the two daughters provide excellent back-up & really sell the notion of a fragmanted family unit attempting to bring themselves back together in the midst of tragedy. It's tough to think of George being any better in a previous film, but for me Gary Oldman, Jean Dujardin & Damien Bichir all still rank ahead of him in the "who I feel deserves the best actor nod" debate. Overall though; an honest, believable drama about grief which is sentimental yet never sickly and having dealt with it myself, feels absolutely true to the scenario of a dysfunctional family dealing with the loss of a key member.

4/5

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Post #: 12
RE: The Descendants - 8/2/2012 10:18:38 AM   
st3veebee


Posts: 2354
Joined: 3/9/2006
From: 9303 Lyon Drive
 Very high hopes for this film last Friday at 12.00 when I found myself in my local Cineworld surrounded by a surprisingly replete audience.

GOOD:

-Clooney is excellent: a nice subtle performance. The entire cast is very good.

-Well judged script: good pacing and the highs and lows deliver.

-Great soundtrack


THE NOT-SO GOOD:

-Clooney. while great, is perhaps not "schlubby" enough to really fit this role.

-Sid character is quite annoying and, to me at least, seemed irrelevant.

-Doesn't have the stand out sequences like in Sideways.



All in all a very good film. I had high hopes and they were met. The cast delivers, the music is perfect, there are some beautiful scenes and cinematography as well as some memorable lines: it just isn't Sideways.

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Post #: 13
RE: The Descendants - 8/2/2012 10:18:55 AM   
st3veebee


Posts: 2354
Joined: 3/9/2006
From: 9303 Lyon Drive
 Very high hopes for this film last Friday at 12.00 when I found myself in my local Cineworld surrounded by a surprisingly replete audience.

GOOD:

-Clooney is excellent: a nice subtle performance. The entire cast is very good.

-Well judged script: good pacing and the highs and lows deliver.

-Great soundtrack


THE NOT-SO GOOD:

-Clooney. while great, is perhaps not "schlubby" enough to really fit this role.

-Sid character is quite annoying and, to me at least, seemed irrelevant.

-Doesn't have the stand out sequences like in Sideways.



All in all a very good film. I had high hopes and they were met. The cast delivers, the music is perfect, there are some beautiful scenes and cinematography as well as some memorable lines: it just isn't Sideways.

_____________________________

Latest Films:

Two days in New York: 4/5

Prometheus: 3.5/5

Abe Lincoln: VH 3/5

Twin Peaks: FWWM 3.5/5

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Post #: 14
RE: The Descendants - 8/2/2012 10:19:08 AM   
st3veebee


Posts: 2354
Joined: 3/9/2006
From: 9303 Lyon Drive
 Very high hopes for this film last Friday at 12.00 when I found myself in my local Cineworld surrounded by a surprisingly replete audience.

GOOD:

-Clooney is excellent: a nice subtle performance. The entire cast is very good.

-Well judged script: good pacing and the highs and lows deliver.

-Great soundtrack


THE NOT-SO GOOD:

-Clooney. while great, is perhaps not "schlubby" enough to really fit this role.

-Sid character is quite annoying and, to me at least, seemed irrelevant.

-Doesn't have the stand out sequences like in Sideways.



All in all a very good film. I had high hopes and they were met. The cast delivers, the music is perfect, there are some beautiful scenes and cinematography as well as some memorable lines: it just isn't Sideways.

_____________________________

Latest Films:

Two days in New York: 4/5

Prometheus: 3.5/5

Abe Lincoln: VH 3/5

Twin Peaks: FWWM 3.5/5

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Post #: 15
RE: The Descendants - 8/2/2012 10:19:22 AM   
st3veebee


Posts: 2354
Joined: 3/9/2006
From: 9303 Lyon Drive
 Very high hopes for this film last Friday at 12.00 when I found myself in my local Cineworld surrounded by a surprisingly replete audience.

GOOD:

-Clooney is excellent: a nice subtle performance. The entire cast is very good.

-Well judged script: good pacing and the highs and lows deliver.

-Great soundtrack


THE NOT-SO GOOD:

-Clooney. while great, is perhaps not "schlubby" enough to really fit this role.

-Sid character is quite annoying and, to me at least, seemed irrelevant.

-Doesn't have the stand out sequences like in Sideways.



All in all a very good film. I had high hopes and they were met. The cast delivers, the music is perfect, there are some beautiful scenes and cinematography as well as some memorable lines: it just isn't Sideways.

_____________________________

Latest Films:

Two days in New York: 4/5

Prometheus: 3.5/5

Abe Lincoln: VH 3/5

Twin Peaks: FWWM 3.5/5

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Post #: 16
RE: The Descendants - 8/2/2012 10:19:29 AM   
st3veebee


Posts: 2354
Joined: 3/9/2006
From: 9303 Lyon Drive
 Very high hopes for this film last Friday at 12.00 when I found myself in my local Cineworld surrounded by a surprisingly replete audience.

GOOD:

-Clooney is excellent: a nice subtle performance. The entire cast is very good.

-Well judged script: good pacing and the highs and lows deliver.

-Great soundtrack


THE NOT-SO GOOD:

-Clooney. while great, is perhaps not "schlubby" enough to really fit this role.

-Sid character is quite annoying and, to me at least, seemed irrelevant.

-Doesn't have the stand out sequences like in Sideways.



All in all a very good film. I had high hopes and they were met. The cast delivers, the music is perfect, there are some beautiful scenes and cinematography as well as some memorable lines: it just isn't Sideways.

_____________________________

Latest Films:

Two days in New York: 4/5

Prometheus: 3.5/5

Abe Lincoln: VH 3/5

Twin Peaks: FWWM 3.5/5

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Post #: 17
RE: The Descendants - 8/2/2012 3:50:31 PM   
nhassell


Posts: 237
Joined: 23/8/2009
Watched this last night. Thought it was very good. Enjoyable, light hearted, but with some emotional heft. Thought Clooney was good, but Dujardin deserves the Oscar.

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Post #: 18
RE: The Descendants - 10/2/2012 8:56:58 PM   
Jackie Boy

 

Posts: 1129
Joined: 2/1/2006
I think it deserves its oscar nom. The movie ambles along rather nicely, it's easy on the eye, & honestly when that music kicks in it's just as good as being there. It's certainly a movie that will linger long in your thoughts.

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Post #: 19
- 15/2/2012 10:15:50 PM   
TheGodfather


Posts: 5100
Joined: 21/10/2005
From: Sin City
 Nice drama in wich Matt King (George Clooney) is going to need to take care for his two daughters after his wife comes into a coma after an accident. While having never done so in the years before the accident, everything falls onto his shoulders now...
A pretty decent film with a story of wich we have seen the bottom line before. What takes this one above mediocrity is an extremely strong George Clooney performance and the tight direction by Alexander Payne. He keeps control of his material and doesn`t let it drift off into sentimental crap, something that could`ve easily happened.

7,8/10

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Post #: 20
- 21/2/2012 8:32:50 PM   
FanaticalAboutFilm

 

Posts: 106
Joined: 8/9/2009
From: somewhere else
 It's funny, sad, moving, beautiful, realistic - all at the same time. The whole cast is great and the dialogue, the scenes and the characters made the movie really enjoyable. I hope The Descendants collects all the awards it truly deserves!!

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Post #: 21
RE: The Descendants - 1/4/2012 2:14:32 AM   
Goodfella


Posts: 15050
Joined: 30/9/2005
From: North Devon
 I enjoyed this very much. It was beautiful, sad, touching, emotive and humorous - I agree whilst Clooney was good he wasn't Oscar-worthy, Shailene Woodley on the other hand was brilliant and deserves award recognition but that aside it was still a lovely film, it may not be quite on the same level as 'Sideways' but it's still an excellent piece of work and you can see why it's got the plaudits.

4/5

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Post #: 22
Hawaiian Punch - 4/6/2012 6:00:59 AM   
Kramer Bozco

 

Posts: 6
Joined: 8/4/2011
While not perfect, this film comes close. Payne is a master of tone, and this one is for the lesson books in terms of getting a story tone right. Clooney has never been better, because he is always this good. A bona-fide star, Clooney exudes class and he plays Max King with such grace and intelligence you'd think he was real.

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Post #: 23
I didn't realize I liked Hawaii this much - 18/1/2013 5:34:07 PM   
FaudeCarfilhiot

 

Posts: 4
Joined: 18/1/2013
This movie, like Sideways, slaps you when you least expect it. There are so many little surprises here - and I do mean little. No CG buildings getting knocked down, no thundering soundtrack, no sudden bursts into impassioned shouting.

But when someone spills the beans, reveals more than they were gonna (and in one sublime piece, bites off the big revelation and decides NOT to out the truth - to spare the feelings of someone obviously deserving the big comeuppance). THAT, amigos, is some damn fine scripting.

There's not a truck, turning into a robot, destroying a building in sight. But be patient enough - this movie has things to say beyond Michael Bay. (And watching Clooney stew in his own skin somehow packs more of an ooomph than watching a CG Hulk bellow at some other CG archetype. Just saying, dude).

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Post #: 24
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