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The Bucket List 8.5 out of 10
Running time: 1:37 MPAA rating: PG-13 (Language, including a sexual reference. ) Peruvian rating: Mayores de 14
Cast:
Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, Sean Hayes,
Beverly Todd, Rob Morrow.
Photography:
John Schwartzman |
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The Bucket List might not be the best film I've seen this week (that honour goes to the unbelievably masterful The Dark Knight), but it's the definitely, along with Grace is Gone, one of the most touching. Say what you want about the way Rob Reiner manipulates the audience's feelings or the sometimes fake-looking special effects... this is a small, performance-oriented film, and it succeeds at being exactly that. Did the special effects need to be amazing? Not really, they're believable enough. And most dramas or "dramedies" need some manipulation from the director and the screenwriter, so that's understandable. The Bucket List is a good movie because it manages to touch the viewer without overly manipulating him/her ("overly" being the key word), and because it's entertaining and shows how good Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman can be. A masterpiece it ain't, but these two veterans elevate the material high enough to make the flick better than what new-comer screenwriter Justin Zackman would have thought it could be.
The Bucket List tells the story of Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson) and Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman), who have both been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Edward is a millionaire CEO with no family except for his assistant, (Sean Hayes), and Carter is a car mechanic who is surrounded by his wife of 47 years, Virginia (Beverly Todd) and his two sons and daughter. Both men meet each other because they have to share a room at Edward's hospital (his "two beds per room" policy couldn't be ignored, not even for him), and after some time, (and the announcement that they both have about six months to live) decide to make a special pact: they create a "bucket list" - a series of things to see and do before they die. They want to do it for fun, and because they want to live as good as they come before they part, but in the end, they might realize that there are a couple of things that are more important to both of them.
It's just amazing to see too living legends of filmmaking, Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, together onscreen. Despite the sad material they have to work for, both of them manage to make the film as fun as it could be and, along with the solid screenplay, develop their characters so that by the end, the audience feels as if they know them. Nicholson plays Cole in typical Nicholson mode, but nevertheless manages to make his performance effective during the more dramatic scenes. He starts the film as an egoistical - yet somehow charismatic individual - and ends it as a better man, and as a good friend. Freeman plays Carter as wiser kind of man; he talks about deep stuff with Cole, and gives him tons of advice. (Although a business regarding his daughter doesn't really work until the very end.) The supporting cast of characters are all right - Sean Hayes as Thomas, Cole's assistant, is kind of a standout - but they don't have enough screentime to shine. This is Freeman and Nicholson's picture.
Now, the movie also works because it is enjoyable, and because it tells a compelling story of two souls meeting each other, getting to know each other, talking about interesting stuff, and ending their lives by doing good and solving problems. While some of the things Cole and - especially - Carter aren't exactly groundbreaking, their conversations are interesting enough to start post-viewing discussions among the members of the audience. The characters are well-developed and their arcs are interesting to experience, and their journey through the world is sometimes funny, sometimes sad, and sometimes thought-provoking. I know Nicholson and Freeman didn't really go to the places they visit during the film - the illusion of them going to the mountains, seeing the Egyptian pyramids, and walking near the Taj Mahal was created by using a mixture of computer technology and footage shot without the actors - but one doesn't really care. Things look believe even though they aren't (and even though the visual effects aren't perfect) because the movie manages to engage the viewer, and because one gets to care about the characters.
The Bucket List is a delightful little film. After seeing tons of big, special-effects-laden films this summer, it was refreshing to see, this week, two small-but-amazingly-compelling movies here at home: Grace is Gone and now The Bucket List. Visual effects aren't perfect and the screenplay isn't as deep as the filmmakers would want the audience to believe, but the film succeeds due to the interesting subject matter, Rob Reiner's solid direction, and Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman's winning performances. This isn't the kind of flick that makes a lot of noise, so I recommend my readers to rent/buy the DVD and watch it at home. It's not flashy enough to require a theatre viewing, so by seeing on your DVD player you won't be losing anything. On the contrary, you'll be able to sit back and enjoy a fun, touching and entertaining motion picture.
©2008 Sebastián Zavala - GG site