The Descendants

Actors:  George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Amara Miller, Nick Krause, Robert Forster, Matthew Lillard, Judy Greer
Rating:  8 out of 10, I was mildly surprised by this, especially watching it last night for the second time.  I initially thought this was a Clooney vanity piece but it is so much more.  I was expecting another attempt at deadpan acting by Clooney that made The American so bad but he really surprised me.  I noted this especially last night when you realize how much depth he achieves as the lead character Matt King.  He's dealing with a comatose, dying wife who he learns was unfaithful in her last months.  He's also in the middle of a huge land deal which will determine the future of a large piece of pristine Hawaii well as some idiotic cousins.  Clooney's voice over narration is also very good and lends some needed support in explaining the back story, especially concerning the land.  The best part about this movie is the way it appreciates Hawaii and it's sense of loss.  I lived in Hawaii for two years and there is a real sense of paradise lost as more and more of the land is developed and the spirit of aloha is diluted.  Hawaii is a magical place to live but that very magic has attracted so many people that it will serve to eventually destroy that very same magic.  There were so many little things about life in Hawaii that this movie got right that I enjoyed it simply for that as well as some spot on acting.  The two young actors, Woodley and Krause, were good, especially Krause who captured the laid back Hawaiian with multiple layers.  I think we'll be hearing a lot more from both of them. I also liked that the director didn't go for cheap sentimentality but offered some multifaceted characters.  Forster seems like a complete A-hole as the father in law but late in the movie you see him leaning over his daughter's death bed and you can feel the pain he's going through.  This movie isn't in my normal wheelhouse of action and adventure but I truly enjoyed the return visit to Hawaii and seeing some great acting.
MVP:  Clooney really can act and it takes a couple of viewing to fully appreciate his great work as Matt King