Nebraska

Year: 2013
Genre: Family Drama
Directed: Alexander Payne
Stars: Bruce Dern, Will Forte, June Squibb, Bob Odenkirk, Stacy Keach, Mary Louise Wilson, Rance Howard, Tim Driscoll, Devin Ratray, Angela McEwan
Production:

Ah the plain States

A while back I took a completely random trip with one of my friends to Iowa. It was the dead of winter and just after a mid-term election so the state was empty of reporters, political insiders and other caucus watchers. We stayed at the Four Star Marriott Hotel in Des Moines for about $45 then set off for Winterset before heading home. It was an amazing trip not because of the destination but because its meaning. Both of us were at a crossroads in our lives and while I have since lost touch with said friend, I considered that trip the beginning of my adulthood.



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Nebraska (2013) conveys that same level of intimacy and importance in the lives of its principle characters Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) and son David (Will Forte). Woody, a hard drinking curmudgeon has deluded himself into thinking he won a million dollars as part of a sweepstakes scam. Unable to convince him otherwise, David agrees to take his father to Lincoln Nebraska from Billings Montana to get his prize. On the way they stop by Woody’s old stomping grounds and get reacquainted with the family.

Ha ha! He's senile like my grandpa!

Co-starring Bob Odenkirk and the revelatory June Squibb, Nebraska is like a 21^st century update on The Last Picture Show (1971), only with a much more hopeful dimension to it. Director Alexander Payne is arguably one of the most gifted directors working today. His personal stories about men on the edge provide an unusual sense of depth for modern Hollywood, and his keen eye for humor is inspiring. Every time I watch a movie of his in theaters, there’s always a smattering of chuckles coming from different directions and at different times from the audience. There is no telling when someone will relate to the situation to the point of laughter but when it happens it’s never coaxed, it’s real.

Walking in I knew Will Forte was going to be in it in an understated performance. And not to take anything away from his brilliant work but I was surprised by the appearance of another comedy giant Bob Odenkirk playing Will Forte’s brother. Both were 100% believable and sympathetic in their roles and I wouldn’t doubt that despite Academy buzz surrounding Bruce Dern’s pernickety performance, both could enjoy very successful careers in serious drama.

Just thinking about all the other
movies I could have been in

Of course one can’t write about Nebraska without mentioning June Squibb’s firecracker performance. While Squibb has been working regularly since the 90’s her work has never gotten much attention until late. I remember her only slightly as the deceased wife from Payne’s other elderly magnum opus About Schmidt (2002). Those sitting through Nebraska in theaters will likely remember a lot of moments but the best lines come right from Squibb’s feisty elderly mother Kate’s mouth. Without her earthy, charismatic performance Nebraska might have been doomed to be an Ingmar Bergman rip-off.

While sitting through Nebraska my mind wondered back to Iowa. Both states have much to offer in the sober, calming landscape department. I was worried that with the film being shot in black and white one might not take full advantage of the true beauty of middle America. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The cinematography by Payne collaborator Phedon Papamichael is majestic in its austerity; a grand symphony between earth, sky and the camera. It’s cinematography that is not meant to create an aura of bleakness like the aforementioned Last Picture Show but a serene silver lining for characters to perch their aspirations.

All said and done, Nebraska isn’t a sad movie but nor is it a light romp through the heartland. It’s a movie that attempts to create characters that are as real as you and me and peering into the woodwork to see what makes them tick. It’s a story about hope, set in Anytown, USA which may have seen better days but will keep going until there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Final Grade: B-