Nebraska (2013) Online

Alexander Payne is one director who marches to the beat of his own drummer - films in Nebraska, uses black and white, and casts some parts locally to get the correct flavor. He doesn't miss a note.

Nebraska is the story of a family of usual dysfunctionals living where else but Nebraska - a quiet, distant father with a little dementia, Woody (Bruce Dern), his two sons, David and Ross (Will Forte and Bob Odenkirk), and their perpetually complaining mother Kate (June Squibb). David sells home electronics and just broke up with his girlfriend; Ross works for a news station and recently replaced the "talent" up front.

The current major problem is that Woody has received something akin to a Publisher's Clearing House certificate telling him he's won a million dollars. All he has to do is buy these magazines and check if the numbers are his. All Woody sees is that he won a million dollars. No one will take him to Lincoln to claim his prize so he starts walking - more than once - until David says he will take him.

On the way, they stop by his parents' home town and drop in on Woody's brother and his family - a scary bunch. Kate takes a bus in and shows David around the cemetery in a scene you'll never forget, trust me. Woody runs into his old partner, Ed (Stacy Keach), and as word spreads that Woody is going to be a millionaire, everybody wants a piece of him, including Ed, who says Woody owes him quite a bit.

This is really a character-driven film, with some of the most vibrant, fleshed-out characters ever on screen and some of the starkest landscapes, filmed in black and white, and giving the viewer the feeling of what it's like to live among miles and miles of farmland interspersed with small towns.

Bruce Dern gives an Oscar-worthy performance as a lifelong alcoholic who has escaped inside himself, a man out of touch and seemingly untouched by any events around him. As the outspoken Kate, June Squibb is absolutely hilarious - always yelling at Woody, threatening to put him in a home, complaining about him, but just don't let anybody take advantage of him, or you'll have to deal with her.

The sons mirror their parents, with David quiet and thoughtful but trying to bond with his father, and Ross, more confident and less sympathetic.

In learning about his father's background, in talking with his old girlfriend (Angela McEwan) David begins to see the man that his father once was and what shaped him. And he finds out that love is sometimes an unspoken thing, but it's there all the same.

A wonderful film, powerful in its simplicity. Don't miss it.

" Nebraska " is :

1- Heart-breaking , how and when: you don't get to know , it just breaks your heart in many moments and also along the general themes .

2- Very thought-provoking , especially if you're in your 20s or 30s .

3- Too deep without even getting near to being complicated and with very little dialogue .

4- Too realistic and too believable , although unpredictable in the least sense with top-notch performances , mainly Bruce Dern who completely swept me off my feet and is too absorbing , thanks to Director Alexander Payne .

One of the best movies I've ever seen , thought about and deeply felt . It will make you wonder about and feel many things , maybe for the first time , like what it is like to get old or have traumas and never talk about or even try to explore the inside of you after them , not loving your children enough and realizing that too late , being hopeless and leading a meaningless life at one point , what ambitions and hope do to a man's soul and many more ..

Strongly recommended for whoever wants to feel and explore genuine themes , which , I warn , are really sad , hopeful , depressing , happy , hilarious , strong and beautiful all at the same time .

"Nebraska" offers viewers an unstinting view of some very unpleasant things: extreme decrepitude, boundless stupidity, greed and ignorance. There is also very deep, and very painful, love on display in this portrait of an embittered working class eking out a meaningless existence in a dysfunctional and remote place. "Nebraska" oscillates between cynicism and schmaltz, pulling off a wondrous kind of emotional alchemy that few films aspire to, let alone attain.

All of the acting is first rate, though the characterizations are rather broadly drawn. Will Forte plays a dutiful, sensitive, repressed son with seemingly unlimited patience for the eccentricities of those around him. He's the perfect foil for Bruce Dern's semi-catatonic, alcoholic ramblings (both verbal and spatial). June Squibb serves up hilarious venom to spice up the mix.

There were scenes in the movie that so perfectly captured the narrow, soulless, deadening ethos so prevalent in small-town America that I could hardly stand to watch them. It was almost as if the tire stores, bars, gas stations and motels of every desolate corner of America were rolled up into one set of visuals here, captured in stunning black and white cinematography.

I highly recommend "Nebraska."

I saw the movie at the Helsinki International Film Festival. It tells a story about an old man who is certain that he has won a million dollars and wants to get to Nebraska to collect it. His family is sure that it is a hoax but his son chooses to drive him there so that the thing wouldn't bother his dad anymore.

Everything about the movie is very low key and the pacing is quite slow. This comes from the choice of shooting it in black and white, style of acting, and the locations and events depicted in the film. For long periods, I found it a little hard to get immersed into the events on the screen and empathize with the characters. I kept thinking that the movie repeats what I did not like about Alexander Payne's earlier work About Schmidt. But then somehow the movie started to grow on me. I still feel there is almost weird resemblance to the road trip and family reunion Jack Nicholson's character goes through in About Schmidt but Nebraska has merits of its own. For one, the characters are quite well written. Even the supporting roles provide witty observations of different ways we might react to other person's fortune. Also, the acting is very good throughout the film. The main characters' lives have become unsatisfying and they are trying to deal with it in different ways. Even though it is a little frustrating to watch people who struggle to find anything meaningful to do or say, the script and the actors are able to draw a very accurate picture of everyday life as it sometimes can be. Here and there, they are able to provide a few laughs and even some satisfaction when the characters are developing, albeit slowly.

Overall, I'd end up recommending the film if you have enjoyed Alexander Payne's previous work.

Bruce Dern gives the performance of his life. He is wonderful. He maintains the quality of tuning in and out of reality throughout the film. Typical of someone with dementia, you are never really sure if he's there or not. There is a moment in the film when he drives and you can just see him glow and come alive.

This is not a film for everyone because it moves slow, but true movie buffs will love it.

Filmed in black and white and bleak (if that were a color) it's a son that takes his father on a road trip

It's quietly poignant, with a lot of very funny moments in it. When the mother is in the scene, she steals every one.

The cousins are a riot and the family members are a cast of characters. This is the sort of film that you leave but doesn't leave you.

Director Alexander Payne is currently one of the best dramatists in cinema right now simply because he makes films about realistic people in realistic situations. Payne seems to see no value in fantasy elements, far-fetched circumstances, or overly-comedic nonsense. His accomplished filmography includes the uproariously funny and poignant Sideways, The Descendants, which I went on to name my favorite film of 2012, the bold satire Election, the humble and depressing About Schmidt, and the daring abortion comedy-drama Citizen Ruth.

Now with Nebraska he adds another incredible film to his filmography. Heavy on the drama, smart with its character depictions, but never schmaltzy nor self-satisfying, Nebraska paints a bleak and depressing portrait of Midwestern life centering on a broken family with little to live for. One day, however, Woody Grant (Bruce Dern in a career-making performance) finds something to live for. Senile, an alcoholic in denial, and not one for long conversations, Woody receives a letter in the mail telling him he won a $1,000,000 prize and should come to Lincoln, Nebraska to collect it. His son, the quietly-sad David (Will Forte), informs him that the letter is a shameless piece of scam mail that requires the subscription to multiple magazines to even qualify for a raffle to potentially win the jackpot.

Woody doesn't care. He believes that people or an organization wouldn't say something that wasn't one-hundred percent true. Residing in Billings, Montana, Woody abandons his long-suffering, brutally honest wife (June Squibb) numerous times by aimlessly walking (sometimes trudging) down interstate highways and side-streets to venture out to Lincoln to collect his supposed earnings. At first, David can't fathom his father's logic. He has informed him several times this is a hopeless scam, that he is in no condition to travel long distances (he can't drive), and he doesn't even need $1 million to begin with. Woody, stubborn as a mule (or is he?), offers very little reasoning for his actions. He simply does what he wants. But when people in Woody's hometown get wind of this, along with distant family members that maybe should've remained distant, Woody now owes everyone money and a favor.

Director Alexander Payne and writer Bob Nelson work wonderfully with Nebraska, especially Nelson, who is sure to paint the characters as realistic as they are relatable to the audiences. Consider Woody's rather large family, made up of codgers who speak in disjointed sentences and delightfully funny souls who like to complain every chance they get. One of these people in particular is Woody's wife Kate, portrayed by a fearless June Squibb where almost everything she says is a laugh riot. A key scene comes when Woody, Kate, and David are visiting the gravesites of Woody's family members and for every person buried six feet under, Kate has a smarmy remark for them.

It's all the more surprising to note that Will Forte, usually known for playing characters in goofball comedies, does tremendous work in a serious, darkly funny, but also depressing drama film. Forte embodies an everyman quality that will make him familiar to some, and the way he tries to live in the boundaries of reality while giving his father something to live for is easily relatable to someone who wants the best for their own parents. However, the performance of the two hours is easily given by Bruce Dern, who has the rare ability to play detached and clueless with a true sense of believability. I can only think of Paul Dano's requirements for his character in Prisoners, released about two months back, where Dano had to always bear a facial expression that rendered him dazed and almost entirely out of touch with reality. Dern uses the effect to true emotional heights in Nebraska, with the uncanny ability to sit with a blank stare on his face and look as if he's about to burst into tears.

That precise quality of Nebraska is why I was so drawn in (along with the excellent black and white photography); its lack of milking its story for emotions. It has the very ingredients to make a person cry from the senile father who never really was one to his children, the broken family, and the unremarkable rural life that seemingly offers no hope outside of a desolate landscape. However, just like Woody, the film looks on the brighter side of life, optimistic about the peculiar instances and finding solace in a practical adventure. It doesn't have time to waste on sappy musical cues and actors phoning in emotion; it's much too concerned for articulating the characters and the adventure at hand.

It's also wonderful to see Will Forte in a pleasantly different role, alongside his frequent collaborator and friend Bob Odenkirk as siblings in Nebraska. The last time Forte and Odenkirk teamed up, if I recall correctly, The Brothers Solomon happened and such a film doesn't even deserve a mention in this review.

Starring: Bruce Dern, Will Forte, June Squibb, Bob Odenkirk, and Stacy Keach. Directed by: Alexander Payne.

Director Alexander Payne "Sideways" (2004) and "About Schmidt" (2002) deftly handles the road-movie plot structure once again with dark humor and satirical depictions of contemporary American society, yielding fantastic results yet again, as a heartfelt journey to examine his frail and flawed characters. Payne himself is a Nebraska native who felt strongly that the movie be filmed black and white to capture the mood of the old American heartland, and in order for the film to receive funding from Paramount, he had to settle for a smaller budget. As a result, Payne films and casts the movie in local communities with actual residents which provides a realistic texture to the family bonding tale. "Nebraska" is a humorous and heart-rendering story of family, but it also sheds a light onto the people of America's heartland, and our countries economic, moral, and cultural decline.

"Nebraska" starts as a road movie, with a father and son traveling from Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska. David (Will Forte) has decided to indulge his father Woody (Bruce Dern), who is struggling with dementia and thinks that he can pick up his $1 million in winnings from a magazine distributor in Lincoln. En route, they stop for the weekend in Hawthorne, Dern's hometown, where they're joined by his wife (June Squibb), and his other son (Bob Odenkirk) amidst your stereotypical Midwestern relatives and friends, all of whom are extremely interested to learn that there's now a millionaire before them.

The central relationship between Dern's stubbornly gullible dad and Forte's passively irritated son gradually deepens as the movie makes its way through middle America. What makes the film such a delight to watch are the individuality of its characters. Each one is fun to watch in their own right; the father's relentless determination, the mother's humorous outbursts, and the son's sympathy and desire to bond with his father. "Nebraska" reaches an emotional conclusion that echoes of "About Schmidt" and "The Descendants" (2011) with an underlying sense of lives largely squandered, but handled with grace and finesse that feels innately genuine. "Nebraska" is another finely tuned, superior slice of cinema crafted by Alexander Payne who achieves a more mature, sentimental tone than previous films. The all-around marvelous performances from the cast and supporting non-professional actors add an unmistakable authenticity to this slice of Americana.

My favorite comedy is sideways (among others) and I love Mr Paynes films (like Election. As an advanced senior I was totally with Bruce Dern, the crankiness, the lack of balance, the drinking the boredom. the many naps. WIll Forte is absolutely superb as a kind loving son, in every way. His patience his help on the many scrapes his dad gets into and his true love. He is a cinch for an Oscar nomination. So are Dern and the actor who plays his wife. Although the film is outright funny, the sensitivity which Payne shows in handling the actors and the bleakness of Nebraska. The people of the small towns are portrayed is as close to real people as you can get. The black and white added to the story, especially the portrayal of the cities and small farms. I think this film will be loved by seniors. Younger people, after they have see Hunger Games could learn a lot from the lives of their grand-parents. A magnificent film, go see it!!

NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL: There is a magical and profound power that is exuded from Alexander Payne's film "Nebraska." I loved just about every second of it. Written by Bob Nelson, the black-and-white dramedy takes us through the beautiful and rural Midwest showcasing opulent and lavish cinematography by Phedon Papamichael. And let's not forget the trio of stunning performances from Oscar-nominee Bruce Dern, Will Forte, and June Squibb. The film tells the story of an aging and ailing Woody (Dern) and his son David (Forte) as they venture off from Montana to Nebraska to collect a million dollar prize that Woody believes he has won.

I've long thought that Alexander Payne was one of the more overrated writer/directors working today. Winning two Oscars for screenplay, only one of them was warranted. I merely enjoyed his film "Election" over ten years ago, couldn't find the emotional connection in "About Schmidt" and found myself perplexed by the love that poured in for "The Descendants." His Oscar-winning film "Sideways" was the only film that lived up to the promise and still retains its magic on repeated viewings. The Paramount Vantage film presents an impeccable example of Payne's directorial skills and style when they're utilized with the right material. "Nebraska" is Alexander Payne's best film, bar none. He creates an intimate setting, even when driving cross-country or walking around an abandoned home, Payne keeps the story close and the responses authentic.

Bruce Dern is perfectly used and exquisitely raw presenting the actor's best outing of his career. As the co-anchor of the story, Dern is finally given a chance to show what Hollywood has been missing out on for over fifty years. Touchingly reserved through most of the narrative, Dern allows Woody to open up to the audience for the briefest of moments that works beautifully. It's an Oscar-worthy performance.

Will Forte surprisingly underplays and buries his normal comedic ticks and beats that made him so successful on "Saturday Night Live." His David searches and finds many of the mysteries that embody the enigma of his alcoholic father, giving Forte an ability to connect fully with the audience. He is equally as affecting as Bruce Dern and this will hopefully lead him into more complex and audacious roles like this in the future.

The wonderful and delightful June Squibb steals the show. Getting the film's biggest laughs and in many ways, offering herself up as the emotional pillar in many aspects of the narrative, Squibb is someone that could walk her way to an Oscar. Nelson's writing, especially in the creation of Kate, Woody's wife, is freshly executed. Say hello to one of your Supporting Actress nominees.

Other supporting players giving their all is Stacy Keach playing a sleazy old friend of Woody's and Bob Odenkirk as David's brother Ross, who bounces well off comedian Forte in some of the film's best scenes.

One aspect that I fell in love with was the score of Mark Orton is musical accompaniment lands precisely with every bar and in every scene. Editor Kevin Tent, who has worked on all of Payne's previous films, finally has found his groove and maintains a steady pace to tell our story. I have to admit that when I first heard that the film was going to be shot in black and white, I'm immediately thought it was going to used as a gimmick. Nearly five minutes into the movie, you can see exactly why he chose to use it. Papamichael captures the natural elements of light in several scenes, some involving a simple living room, others when we're in the car with the family. "Nebraska" is one of the year's best pictures. Something that will surely appeal to a certain demographic of the Academy. It runs as a light and comedic companion piece to Michael Haneke's "Amour." It's a film that will surely be in contention for several Academy Awards including Best Picture.

"Nebraska" stars Bruce Dern playing Woody Grant, a 77-year-old man living in Billings, Montana who believes he's won a million dollars from a publisher's sweepstakes just because he received a craftily worded sales letter from the company. When the movie opens, we see Dern on foot, hoofing his way on the outskirts of Billings and on his way to Lincoln, Nebraska to claim his prize. It quickly becomes clear that the years have not been kind to Dern's character Woody. Alcohol, age, the bleak northern US Midwest, and the long line of life's events have left Woody a bit addled, which is why a sales letter can make him believe he's a millionaire. Turns out, he was always like that.

Woody's son David, played by Saturday Night Live alum Will Forte, also lives in Billings. He sells home theaters and other consumer electronics in the local appliance store, drives a dented Suburu wagon, and has the usual dysfunctional relationship with his increasingly disconnected father. After Woody makes several attempts on his own to escape Billings and make it to Lincoln, David agrees to take Woody to Lincoln in his Suburu. Events along the way take both Woody and David to Woody's tiny fictional hometown in northeast Nebraska where Woody's past awaits.

And there you have the setup for another of director Alexander Payne's wonderful road-trip comedies, cast from precisely the same mold as "About Schmidt" and "Sideways." This movie takes us through Woody's long past so that the present can seen with sharper focus. If you like those movies, you will love "Nebraska" too.

There's one more thing you will also love and that is June Squibb's portrayal of Woody's wife Kate. Squibb plays Kate as a force of nature with a mouth that's funny, insightful, profane, and tender all at the same time. Dern's already won one film award for his Woody and many of us believe Squibb will do the same with her Kate Grant. Squibb also played the wife who suddenly dropped dead in "About Schmidt." We didn't get to see much of her in that movie but she gets plenty of opportunity to steal a bunch of scenes in "Nebraska." This is a very funny movie with some poignant statements to make about aging, familial relationships, and the past's influence on the present. In that way, "Nebraska" is just like director Payne's other road-trip movies. But "Nebraska" is its own story with an entirely different take on these topics.

For some of us, it's a lot of fun to see great movies before they open. We got the opportunity to see "Nebraska" a few days before it opened in a national expansion of the New York Film Critics Series, which started in 1995. Last-minute tickets for this event were provided by Paramount through the tireless efforts of Tim Sika, founder and head of the San Jose Camera Cinema Club. Thanks Tim.

Time is a peculiar yet universally felt concept whose effects can be seen in its numerous consequences either through the obvious traits of aging or the far more subtle and subjectively felt intangibles such as regret. In the heart of the Midwest there are depressingly poetic examples of this thoroughly felt concept of time how the vast stretches of what appears to be infinite plains of nothing are filled with monuments of ruin either in the ghost town cities or the deserted farmland all of which are consequences of economic hardship and familial anchors. This is the melancholic setting of Alexander Payne's new film Nebraska, a sad yet endearing road trip film that becomes a sort of modern Don Quixote influenced story where a regret filled, dementia gaining father resembling the infamous dreamer Quixote resiliently chases the remnants of a thin dream accompanied by his affably neutered son serving as the loyal Sancho Panza. Nebraska clearly resembles previous films that have captured the distinct American spirit and eccentric characters of the parched Midwest, including Peter Bogdonovich's The Last Picture Show and David Lynch's oddly accessible The Straight Story, but remains uniquely an Alexander Payne film containing his penchant for mixing whimsically dry humor with poignant humanity. At the center of Payne's film is an astonishingly subtle performance from experienced acting veteran Bruce Dern whose stern blankness and aging dementia makes for an intriguing parallel to the derelict environments throughout the Midwest setting which is captured brilliantly through cinematographer Phedon Papamichael's poetic black & white imagery. This whimsical yet mournful ode to Midwestern life, values, and legacy is aided through the lost art of subtle acting and the usually non-existent talent for subtle direction allowing the intended humor to land directly and the emotional heart to enter gracefully. While Nebraska might be an engaging, humorous, and sweet amalgamation of Payne's previous works where the road trip element of Sideways meets the intimate family dynamic of The Descendants it's definitely a transition film for the quirky storyteller as it embraces a far more poetic and humanist side to the director's incredibly heartfelt style of filmmaking. It's difficult to say where exactly Nebraska will fall in Payne's established film canon but as it stands on its own it's a deeply lyrical reflection on the loss of time and a credible affirmation on the long enduring existence of hope.

More on this review: http://wp.me/py8op-Ck; Other reviews: generationfilm.net

In Billings, Montana, the old mechanic Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) has dementia and believes that he has won a million-dollar prize, but it is actually the marketing advertisement of a magazine. Woody does not drive anymore and he tries to walk to Lincoln, Nebraska, to collect the prize. His wife Kate (June Squibb) and his older son Ross (Bob Odenkirk) want to send him to a nursing home, but his estranged younger son David (Will Forte) decides to satisfy his fantasy and travels with him to Lincoln to claim his prize. During their journey, they stop in Hawthorne to visit their dysfunctional family and friends and David learns the past and dreams of his father. In the end, David makes his father's dreams come true.

"Nebraska" is a sensitive story of a father and son journey where the son understands his old father in an environment of greedy and ignorance of family and friends. The story is simple, the characters are believable and Bruce Dern deserves his nomination to the Oscar. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Nebraska"

The real travesty of living in middle America is the frequency with which wonderful films that I greatly look forward to never make it to this section of the planet. The 2013 film by Alexander Payne, Nebraska was one such film. Nebraska was the film I anticipated seeing most in 2013, never made it to any theaters near me. Somehow, I hadn't seen it in the three years since it was released either, so I was greatly looking forward to seeing this. I purchased Nebraska before seeing it because I was that confident that I would love it, and I was right. Starring Bruce Dern, Will Forte, and June Squibb, Nebraska explores the divide between parents and their children, aging, and the expectations one has for themselves vs. the reality that happens to them as a father and son make a journey together to retrieve what the father believes to be a sweepstakes prize. A deeply moving examination of the life issues we all must face, Nebraska is an absolute treasure of a film.

Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) is a simple man who listens to his wife and is trusting to a fault. Always believing everything he is told, Woody is the perfect victim for a mailing scam claiming that he has won 1 million dollars. Woody believes that the letter wouldn't have been sent out unless he won, so he enlists his son to take him on a multi- state journey to collect his winnings. David Grant (Will Forte), Woody's son, knows the letter is a scam, and his father hasn't won any money, yet, feels compelled to take time off work from his job as an electronics salesman to drive his elderly father on his quest. David sees that the letter has given his father a desperately needed purpose, and refuses to completely quash his ambition. Woody is an alcoholic, crushed by what his life has become, in a loveless marriage with his wife, Kate (June Squibb), a quiet man who is simply going through the motions at the end of his life. Throughout the journey, David gets to see several aspects of his father's early life including his childhood home, the graves of his family, even a former lover. David learns a great deal about the father that he and his brother have been battling over whether or not to put him in a nursing home. Most importantly, David learns that his nearly mute father only wants to collect the money so that he has something to leave his children after he dies; something to prove that his life was worthwhile, and he took care of those he loved. What began as a trip in which David thought he would be teaching his father about the realities of mailing scams, turns out to be a journey in which David learned more about his father than he could have ever imagined.

I admit, I easily cry at movies. Nebraska pulls at the heartstrings of even the coldest person, due to the fact that the issues delved into within the film are ones that everyone will deal with at one time or another. Nebraska explores aging, small town mentality, the reality of the end of life, and the disappointment when expectations do not become reality. Woody was nearing the end of his life and his sons and wife were arguing over whether or not to put him into nursing home care. David didn't believe that he needed to be in a nursing home, he just needed attention and understanding. The divide between parents and their adult children is deeply explored. Adult children, no longer dependent upon their parents, oftentimes forget the sacrifices their parents made for them and become so engrossed in their own lives, that they refuse the responsibility of caring for their parents at the end of their lives. Alexander Payne does a brilliant job of the mentality of small-town inhabitants that know the same people and the same walls their entire lives and are easily fooled by such illusions of grandeur like Woody and his million dollars. As David and Woody's journey progresses, we see the dreams and expectations of each major character in the story, and how vastly different those dreams are from the reality that they created. This divide was illustrated in such a painfully exceptional way it could not be forgotten. It seems as though, many people in the town and some others in the film were not professional actors, and if that is the case, it was a brilliant decision on the part of Alexander Payne, adding more realism to the film. Bruce Dern, however, plays his part exceptionally, completely stealing every scene he is in, whether he speaks or not. Much of Dern's acting is physical, a head nod or a certain way he carries himself creating a physical performance like few I've seen before. Dern was greatly overlooked by the Academy by not being awarded the top prize for his portrayal of Woody Grant. Nebraska is a perfect film, shot in Black and White as the story absolutely necessitates, gripping to the end and explorative like no other.

This film was not made for our generation. I personally think that this film is dedicated to the lives that our grandparent's lived. This is shown most predominately through the character of Woody Grant, who goes back to the town that the grew up in (called Hawthorne) on the way to collect his "million dollars." The character of David Grant (Played by Will Forte) is Woody's son and acts as a representation of the audience, learning about his dad's past as he runs into the other senior citizens of Hawthorne who tell him stories about his dad. Surprisingly, it seems like David doesn't know much about his dad, as everything that is told to him is stuff that the didn't know before. This shouldn't come as much as a surprise to him though, because his dad is a man of few words, just like how my grandpa is. Probably the most heartfelt moments in the film is when Woody visits the house that he grew up in, and when he looks at his old barn, Bruce Dern does a fantastic job of showing that the character is having a heavy dose of nostalgia and is thinking about all of the memories that he has in that place.

Nebraska is a film that everyone should show to their parents or grandparents because it will make them think of all the memories that they have had in their past and will give them a reason to think about their lives as a whole.

you can note the writer (Bob Nelson) superiority in making the characters and screenplay that makes you feel such a strange feeling when you watching the movie, as the whole cast are old-people except 4 or 5 characters in the whole movie, also the director (Alexander Payne) has made a great job to introduce to us such a great movie by choosing Black&White scenes, which can make you feel and touch lives of the old- people.

Here we have the great actor (Bruce Dern) who outperformed his role as (Woody Grant), he is one of the most powerful Oscar nominees and he deserve to get it, we also have (Will Forte) as (David Grant) he played his role very well, and (June Squibb) as (Kate Grant) "Woody's wife" and she performed such an amazing role.

It's An amazing story tells us how to respect anybody else's thoughts, even if that doesn't make sense to us, and it's a different cinematic trial which is made me amused

This movie makes me laugh, but also makes me sad. Getting old is bad,and watch our dad getting old is bad,too. I rarely talk to my dad, or go somewhere which him, and when i watch this movie, i want to go home right now and hug my parents, and say i love them so much and more. Our parents, their last wish sometime is just give us something, something to leaved us : a car, a truck, a house, something like that. And in their last years, if have any chance to do that, they will do it with all their heart and power. This movie also make we see more about people. When you're poor, no one by your side. But when they hear you're rich, they will come to you right the way. One more, in 2013, all movie is full of color, Nebraska just have black and white, that make some different.

In a film industry dominated by crowd-pleasing blockbusters and gross-out comedies, Alexander Payne's gentle, thoughtful movies have always set themselves apart. More chatty than explosive, less hilarious than contemplative, Payne's films - from About Schmidt through to Sideways and The Descendants - have been the welcome antidote to Hollywood's worst excesses. Nebraska, an uplifting, heartbreaking treatise on love and family, is perhaps his finest yet: a sweet, tart, perfectly-measured balance between the comedy and tragedy of life and old age.

Convinced that he's won a million dollars in a dubious mail-order sweepstakes, Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) resolves to travel from Montana to Nebraska to claim his prize. The only trouble is that he's bordering on the infirm: his wits are fast disappearing into old age and alcoholism, and no one - least of all his mouthy wife Kate (June Squibb: stealing scenes with glee and aplomb) and eldest son Ross (Bob Odenkirk) - are willing to indulge his latest whim. Only David (Will Forte), his second son, decides to humour the irascible old codger. Together, Woody and David embark on a road trip that will take them through Woody's old hometown - and a step or two closer to understanding each other.

This journey of discovery is, of course, both literal and metaphorical. When stopping off in Woody's old stomping grounds, David meets Ed Pegram (Stacy Keach), his dad's former business partner - a mix of charming and shady, an old-school predator always on the hunt for a quick buck. He also finds an extended family and townsfolk either bitterly jealous of or genuinely happy for Woody's purported new fortune.

But David also learns more about his dad. As the film unfolds, it becomes evident that the son lost sight of the father a long time ago, after Woody wrapped himself in a taciturn, booze-fuelled haze that carries him through most of the film. In the place that made and - in some ways - broke his father, David peels away the layers of age and dust that obscure the man who once was.

The greatest joy of Nebraska is its deft, wonderful way of exploring and deepening its characters. Payne, working off a spare, unsentimental script by Bob Nelson, allows the Grant family to live and breathe, their insecurities and fears slipping through the cracks of humdrum, everyday life. Even Kate and Ross, who turn up for the unscheduled family reunion, have a depth that goes beyond their supporting roles. As Kate fusses around Woody, casually insulting him in an almost shocking fashion, it's easy to see the years of love, frustration and life they share.

Dern has been rightfully lauded for his turn as Woody: he drifts through the film, trailing a shock of unruly white hair and a puzzling determination to get to Nebraska come hell or high water. But what impresses is Dern's ability to cut a figure both noble and utterly ordinary: an old man, lost in time and within himself, determined to make one final stand. Forte, too, is marvellous - he sheds all signs of his better-known comedic persona as the sweet, caring David, who decides to take what he knows is a futile trip just to spend some time with his dad. It's a shame that awards season has passed him by; Forte is the tremulous heart of Nebraska, just as Dern is its spunky soul.

Shot in stunning, velvety black-and-white, Nebraska might seem like a throwback to simpler times. In a way, it is. This is an age-old story of family, love and connection: of missing the man beneath the memories, of not always understanding the people you've lived with all your life. But the film also has a darker, more modern heart, buried beneath the script's sad, bittersweet shades of grey. Woody is drawn by promises of wealth that are plainly false, a comment - one might think - on the faltering American economy of the past few years. It's a fine balancing act that Payne pulls off wonderfully well.

Sometimes, one learns about a film's key characteristic in its first frame: a dreary highway somewhere in the American wilderness, somewhere in the outskirts of a rather non-descript town. An old man walks on it, fragile, yet doggedly ploughing on. Yes, Nebraska, the new film by Alexander Payne (Sideways, The Descendants) is a road movie. And yes, as is often the case with Payne, it is a family story. a father and son who never had much to say to each other, the younger (Will Forte) an average man with an average job and a girlfriend who just walked out on him, the elder a life-long drinker, hard, bitter, unapproachable. Of course, they will find some closeness on their journey which is a strange journey indeed: the father has received a letter proclaiming he won a million dollars, Everyone else recognizes it for what it is: a trick to sell magazine description but the father, somewhere between stubbornness and beginning dementia, refuses to accept it. Try as they may but again and again, Woody walks out to go the 750 miles to Nebraska to pick up his prize. In the end, son David relents and drives him. They stop by in his father's home town where an impromptu family reunion is staged, the assumed riches generate various desires and old conflicts alight again among the town's people before they continue on their journey, which unexpectedly ends in a little, humorous triumph.

The film turns out to be a bit of a mixed bag. It is strongest when it focuses on the family and on Woody. Bruce Dern is the real story – and the most accomplished story teller – of Nebraska. Payne gives him plenty of close-ups, and the 77-year-old pays back with interest. The black and white which Payne has chosen for his film helps to give Dern's face an out of time quality, like someone from old days long gone by, an wanderer from a world we hardly remember. How he moves from the expressionless appearance of a man who has plainly lost it, to subtle glimpses of some sort of life left in him, how his eyes convey unexpressed love, lingering regret, unsatisfied longing while the rest of his face remains immobile and seemingly dead is as breathtaking as it is done with the finest of brushes. These people, living isn't the desolate wastelands of Montana or Nebraska do not talk much, they are hardened by time of life, but there is still a residue of love – for each other, for life. There is hardly any discernible change in the (non-)relationship of Woody and David by the film's end, yet they have come many, many miles, are closer than they have ever been. and suddenly this highly dysfunctional group – the stubborn stone-like Woody, the melancholic David, the bitter and constantly complaining mother June Squibb) and the successful older brother (Bob Odenkirk), who is as vain as he is pragmatic, merge into a family unit that in the end, is all they have and they know it.

The dry, matter-of fact observational style Payne is such a master of, highlighted by those long, quiet, slow frames, with the camera repeatedly moving into the distance only to come unbearable close the next moment, is here intensified by the pale, relentless black and white, depicting a world more dead that alive, a world of aging populations and deserted houses, harvested farms and empty roads, run- down taverns and people who have nothing left to say. Payne's look is one of clinical precision, he doesn't spare us any of its ugliness and yet he finds love where it could not e expected. What has been gained on this trip is fragile, it might not even have much substance but we must believe in it because it is all that there is.

Nebraska could have been a memorable, touching, even cautiously funny film if it did not have that other level: it also tries to be a satire of greed, of narrow-mindedness, of all the vices even well-meaning people can fall victim to. The problem is that Payne turns most of his minor characters into one-dimensional caricatures, ridiculous idiots, flat characters with no redeeming features. Stacy Keach, for example, stars as Ed, former collaborator and friend of Woody's and is made to depict him as a rather ridiculous villain that is oddly out of place here. The portrayal of the extended family as slow, silent dunces is rather simplistic, too, and contrasts strangely with the subtle depiction of the protagonists. All in all, the Nebraskan town they are stuck in for two days is full of clichéd country folk with only one positive standout who in her ever-smiling goodness is even more unbearable than those lusting after a share of the assumed riches. The effect is that the black and white takes over the story and characterization for much too long, creating an odd coldness that keeps distancing us from what we see. Nebraska is two films in one which do not fit together with one of which even being a rather bad one. At the end, one wishes Alexander Payne had trusted his main characters – and his actors – a little more. They could have carried the film and there is some reason to believe they should have.

http://stagescreen.wordpress.com/2014/01/21/life-in-black-and-white/

It's been nine long years since Alexander Payne's top twenty worthy masterpiece Sideways and I can't shake off the feeling he has another one in him. He's an odd director with his contradictions, safe yet often unsafe, mature yet often silly, exciting yet mellow. I hoped The Descendants would be that film but my expectations were set far too high. While it's grown on me a little since I saw in the theater as I've accepted it's more of an observant drama than a sharp comedy, it's a relatively weak followup to Sideways. Unfortunately I've found that his older films are not good at all, Election disappointed me a lot and I thought About Schmidt was utterly pointless and charmless. I guess that's the main issue with his films, they feel too on- the-surface while it's surface is too low-key to be enough. Sideways manages to connect, but the others feel like their stories are in a bubble, isolated from us.

However, Nebraska has more than enough depth to go around. It may be low-key with its conflict and narrative drive, but its study on the American dream is fascinating. What draws middle-America to riches for nothing? It's become a part of our human condition to strive for that dream. I love films like these where its catalyst is farcical but its approach is mature and thoughtful. It makes you think about time, relationships and generations as our protagonist, played by Will Forte, investigates his father's past, taking that typical amateur detective mold of Payne's films. It's strange that I've recently been in the presence of my namesake's grave as Forte does too. The film regularly conjures deeply personal and specific feelings like that, but not without a great sense of humour, often coming from a silly place. However, it's just chuckles and sighs as the screenplay pulls its punches and holds back for a slighter effect. In a way it's admirable, feeling more honest, in another it's one step short of deep satisfaction. But it's certainly quite satisfying at the very least.

In Payne's films, they're usually about family but only follow part of the family. Nebraska is unusual as eventually the whole unit is together on Woody Grant's journey. The fantastic cast makes this chemistry work and there's an endearing nostalgic quality to see them together on screen. While Forte's character is a bit too passive for him to really shine, despite this being off-type for him, Bruce Dern definitely deserves his acclaim. His bitterness may come out with a snarling bite but he's utterly human and fragile. June Squibb is a welcome presence as she pumps energy into the film's second half, however it's the incredible cinematography steals the show, even beating this year's Gravity for me. The blocking is precise but organic and the shots of the clouds of Nebraska make my stomach sink with their profound beauty. Nebraska may be more intellectually stimulating than emotionally, but perhaps it'll get better on rewatch. Alexander Payne seems like fine wine anyway as his films get better and better.

8/10

**I'll try to be discreet, but there will probably be some indirect spoilers ahead **

First, let me agree with virtually everyone else that the performances by Dern, Forte, Squibb and the rest of the cast were top-notch. The cinematography was beautiful, the choice to film in black-and-white was appropriate and effective. The script, the score, and the supporting cast - from Odenkirk and Keech down to the woman in the contest office - all right on the money. So why only 6 (leaning toward 5)stars?

Yes, there is much to like here: some tender moments, some laugh-out- loud funny bits (Kate's running commentary in the cemetery and her final goodbye to an old suitor is hilarious), an absolutely beautiful set piece at the old homestead, even a small comic caper vignette. And the final 10-12 minute sequence is almost (but not quite) good enough to redeem the rest of my quibbles. First, with a running time of almost 2 full hours, combined with the generously long average shot length and slow, fluid camera movements, the film seemed much too long. I think it would have benefited from a little more aggressive editing. By the end, I found myself feeling akin to Woody's character through much of the movie - walking and driving and walking some more, but not actually getting anywhere. When we/he finally *do* get to our destination, the payoff hardly seems worth the effort. None of the characters had really changed much, the few things we learned about their back stories never paid off (I'm thinking specifically about what Peg reveals to David about his father's military career), there was no larger no social commentary (at least none that I could find), and by the end, I couldn't complete the sentence: "this movie tried to say _________ about __________".

I'm sure I'll be in the minority, but for me, with as much as there was to admire about the film, it was ultimately a case of the whole being less than the sum of its parts. All in all, not much more than a pleasant diversion.

While the film has generally received anywhere from positive to rave reviews, I am decidedly in the opposite camp. It would appear that Payne was attempting to create some sort of dark comedy, but in my opinion the result turned out to be simply a tedious cartoon. All of the characters with perhaps the exception of the son Dave played by Will Forte, seemed very two dimensional with little, if any, depth unfolded or transformation effected by the conclusion of the film. The character of Woody Grant never moved beyond a sad and pathetic 75 year old man with a brain addled by a long history of alcoholism and cursed with the onset of Alzheimer's. Payne painted this in broad brush strokes with the character mostly gazing off into space, saying "Huh" when spoken to, and daydreaming with his mouth open. His wife Kate was something out of an Al Capp comic strip, a sort of overdrawn termagant wife played by June Squibb who usually yelled her lines to the camera, sort of like Olive Oyl as the ultimate bitch. The minor roles of the aging townspeople in the fictional town of Hawthorne, NE where Woody and his family visit en route from Billings, MT to Lincoln, NE in his quest to collect a $Million in a scam magazine sweepstakes, were equally as shallow and simply included, in what seemed to be a cynical stereotypical portrait of a small town in Nebraska, a collection of quasi Grant Wood American Gothic zombies, who do nothing but drink at the local pub and watch football on television. Local Nebraskans will tell you that older people in these communities are far more in touch with the world, and not living any kind of isolated life that may have existed 60 years or so ago or the bleak kind of picture of the past which Payne seemed to be trying to paint.

I might subtitle the film as Nebraska: A Road Trip in Circles. From what I could gather, the storyline was supposedly intended to trace the process of family bonding (primarily that of son Dave and father Woody) through a bittersweet road trip revisiting family and friends along the way. Usually road trip movies offer some degree of character transformation by the conclusion. Here there seemed little if any change. Woody was still living his life in a hazy daze though now possessing a new truck and generator purchased for him by his son when they arrived in Lincoln and discovered there was no prize money. While his wife Kate exhibited one fleeting moment of tenderness toward Woody near the end of the film in a perfunctory kiss on the cheek, there was nothing to suggest that there would be any difference in their ensuing lives together. Perhaps the son Dave may have felt a bit closer to his father after the trip, but heading back to Billings, there seemed little sense of that. Again, I have no idea of what exactly Payne was attempting to accomplish with this film. It was anything but comedic or tragic or any kind of subtle ambiguous satiric mixture of the two. There was, however, some wonderful shots of rural landscapes, but unfortunately, the fine cinematography didn't prove quite enough to redeem the film overall.

Greetings from Lithuania.

What a terrific and warm movie this is. Shot beautifully in black and white it tells a story as old as the movies itself. Acted wonderfully by a veteran Bruce Dern with a terrific support by June Squibb and all involved this a great film by a great Alexander Payne. If you have enjoyed his movies in the past, the you will be in nirvana watching "Nebraska". This film also reminded me of "The Straight Story" - another terrific film. "Nebraska" is a forth film from 2014th contenders for best movie Oscar that i saw, and to be honest, i enjoyed it more that "Captain Phillips" or "Dalas Buyers Club" - two very solid film. The forth is "Gravity", but that one is in another level of movie making, hope you know what i mean.

Overall, "Nebraska" i a great, slow, quite road movie that will definitely move you.

I was hesitant to see this film, as it looked like yet another road pic where father and son or whoever bond on the road. But critics and friends love the movie. So we tried it out, and I wish the road was the only problem with the movie.

I am a Payne fan, but I can't see why he would make this movie besides it being named after his home state. If Oklahoma wasn't already taken, this movie could have been called that. Or Montana. Or Wyoming. There is nothing distinct about the characters or setting in this movie to warrant its being made beyond a personal connection for Payne. Too bad for Payne the script is so contrived that it doesn't come across as personal but caricature.

I gave this movie a chance for 20 minutes, as I was surrounded by Christmas vacation movie rubes who seemed to be laughing at things that weren't supposed to be funny. But when June Squibb's character flashes a gravestone in an obvious and painful attempt at humor, I turned on this film. At that point my suspicion that these were caricatures and not real life characters was confirmed. They were just doing wacky sitcom things because they're cute, quaint simple-minded townsfolk. Check out the screenwriter's credits- it's his first feature film, with only one TV show I've never heard of, and writing for MAGIC JOHNSON'S TALK SHOW! for previous credits. That's it! And it really feels like a first-time script, with it not being concerned with genuine, natural feeling plot of character development, sticking to a trite formula that makes the viewer FEEL like they're watching a movie, which is not a good thing.

The story ends well, but the last 10 minutes' payoff was not worth the excruciatingly slow and painful dialogue and "plot" that precedes it. The movie's worst feature is that it relies on a bunch of false conflicts where a simple explanation from Will Forte's character could have resolved everything, a la a Three's Company episode. In fact, such an explanation could have made Bruce Dern's plight more sympathetic, and given the townsfolk a chance to show some humanity rather than their two-dimensional idiosyncrasies and quirks.

The script's problems are compounded by Payne's directorial choices. Can someone explain to me why this is in black and white? Besides a director's insecurity, and wanting the film to seem more important than it is? The already slow script turns to molasses when Payne decides to gather 10 male townsfolk in a living room to watch TV. Payne thinks he's being insightful and/or clever by showing them looking at the TV, aka his camera. The "simple" townsfolk just stare at the camera, watching you watch the film. One caricature asks a question. He receives a one word response. A long pause as everyone continues to stare at the camera/T. Another question asked, a remark made, with a slowly delivered one word response. Absolute. Torture. The pace of this movie made the mostly excellent 3 hour Wolf of Wall Street fly by in comparison.

I can't fault the acting here, but even Bruce Dern's role didn't have much depth or dimension. I already mentioned June Squibb's part, and I have to fault the script that I found her to be obnoxious. Will Forte does his job, but that's about all. The only memorable performance for me was Peg Nagy as Angela, a former love interest of Dern's. Hers was the only part that felt like it could have been a real person. She played the part with a subtlety and poignance that the rest of the film lacked.

Nebraska is the first Payne film that I didn't like. Hope it's the last.

For a while there I thought Alexander Payne was the best director in the world. He hit the bullseye with About Schmidt and Sideways telling compelling, entertaining stories about 'real' people. He was so anti-Hollywood, showing the side of life no one 'wants to see', but never allowing concept or style to overwhelm or replace the story. The story had been the backbone of the film, and those stories were great. There is a lot of quirk and heart and good intent with The Descendants and Nebraska, but they are not engaging stories. They may be stories, but Mr. Payne's flair has caught up with himself, it seems. His last two films have relied on what have become tricks, using set decoration minutia, witty, surprising dialogue, casting real-looking people (or non-actors in many cases), uncharacteristic and shocking sexual overtures made by unlikely candidates. Those things worked in About Schmidt and Sideways (and Election) because the good stories those movies told were only highlighted by those details and comic turns, not supported by them. In The Descendants it seemed Mr. Payne had gone soft and cast Clooney in a typical-Clooney role (just a great guy, what a great guy he is!), unlike Nicholson in About Schmidt in a role we had never imagined he would play (and play so well). The Hawaii land plot a diverting and unnecessary distraction and contrivance, the heart-tugging classic father/daughter relationship, the glamour of the locale, the ultimate graciousness and forgiveness, all basically a reversal of Payne's style. Like he went Hollywood. He was critically lauded and nominated for awards as his other films had been. But it stopped mattering, because now it was just mediocre, by the standards Payne had set for himself. He probably knew that and made Nebraska as his rebuttal to himself. The film almost punishes us by its lack of dimensionality. We know where this is going and it is not surprising. Painfully slow without demonstrating its need for such, not even making literal sense at times, the movie never gains any steam, there is no rising action, it is a big flat line across the screen. It resorts to the aforementioned tricks to distract us from realizing that, while this may be called a story, it is not a compelling one, and one that does not take risks. It uses tricks. Example of a trick: The younger son's girlfriend is intentionally unattractive and overweight. We're supposed to think this lends some credibility to the realism of the film. 'Oh, isn't that interesting! We're not seeing a Hollywood starlet in the girlfriend role! She's ugly and overweight! How interesting!' This is just set decoration. Such tricks worked in his previous films, but not here, because it is a mask. What does this trick accomplish? Establishing the son's character as.. Sympathetic, pathetic, realistic, weak..?? Who knows. Who cares. Without creating a great story, these choices are merely interesting, but no longer important. Why isn't the story great? The writing and the plot. They must continue shooting itself in the foot, because the protagonist is never-endingly taciturn, and while we can sense there is more going on inside him, the movie intentionally makes us guess at why he will not let go of a ridiculous claim to the million dollars. Is it because he's senile? Is it because he's poorly educated and isn't intelligent enough to render common sense to the matter? Why doesn't he get it? He's out of it? We don't know. We don't ever know. The movie doesn't want us to know. If we knew, we would know that there is no reason, because it's all contrived, it's a device. I am only so critical because I was such a big fan of his other films. I realize that is possibly unfair. But this is the Internet, we can write whatever we want. Who cares. But I really care, so maybe you're like me out there, who was so touched and inspired by Mr. Payne's previous work. I was so desperately looking forward to The Descendants, like I needed it, I needed to be affected, I needed to see a great story in the movie theater. Perhaps it's unreasonable to expect greatness. But in this day and age, it is so rare, we have only a special few that are capable, Mr. Payne being one. So despite my complaints, I hope Mr. Payne has a great story to tell again some day. In the meantime, we have got to pick up the slack, myself included.

This film really made an impression on me. The movie is fantastically directed by Alexander Payne who is renowned and has been praised for the movies Sideways and The Descendants amongst others. He brings a different style to the directing role through his inspired shots of the wide and stagnant Nebraskan country side and does a fantastic job at emphasising isolation, not just geographically but emotionally within the characters. His interesting take and choice of filming the movie in black and white, shows something about his vision of what seems to be the characters understanding of each other, but as the movie progresses we see that is not true at all. He has truly hit the spot direction wise and I am very interested to see what he will be coming up with in the future. The Camera work in this movie is astonishing. We have a fantastic variation of shots in this movie. We have shots varying from these long in frame, and duration, shots of the elegant Nebraskan farming scenery, to these close up and medium shots of David and Woody (and all the characters) that show us a very raw and corrupted relationship between a father and son. Through the arrangement of these shots we gain a rare insight and experience into this family's distraught life and gives the title 'Road Trip Movies' a new name. The juxtaposition of acting we get in this movie between Will Forte and Bruce Dern is inspired. The ex-alcoholic father and the son who will do almost anything to not turn out like him. We get a real insight into the mindset of all the characters in this movie through the incredible acting of not only Will Forte and Bruce Dern but the entire supporting cast as well. Through this movie we also get a fantastic contrast in the acting ability of Will Forte, with his interesting performance as the jerk cop in the comedy movie, 'The Watch,' and his stunning portrayal of a quirky yet gentle souled man who only wants to do right by his father and the rest of his family. I was truly taken in by this movie and really understand why Bruce Dern was given the best actor award at the Cannes Film Festival and believed him, and the movie in general, deserved more credit than it was given at the Academy Awards. Overall though, if you are interested in semi-art type movies, you should enjoy this quite thoroughly, but if you are more of a blockbuster film type person I would suggest you look for something else unless you are willing to take a little walk on the wild side. Great movie though 9/10