Nebraska is not Alexander Payne’s love letter to his home state. It is not his version of Manhattan or Paris, Texas, turning Nebraska into a magical, other worldly place to live. For director Payne, the state of Nebraska is comparative to the way David Grant sees his family. Harsh, messy, imperfect, but home nonetheless and there is no getting away from that connection.
David Grant is the main character in Payne’s Nebraska, a father-son road trip film. David (Will Forte) doesn’t have a very big or important life, as his father mentions in a back-handed sort of way. He works as a sales man at an electronics store, lives in an apartment in Billings, Montana, and just broke up with his girlfriend of 2 years because couldn’t make a commitment. But he is also on constant call to take care of his father Woody (Bruce Dern), who isn’t all there due to age, dementia, and years of drinking. Most recently, Woody has been on a mission to retrieve the million dollars a letter from a publisher sweepstakes says he’s won. Everyone tells him its nothing but a scam, but Woody won’t believe them. And unlike his hard-hearted mother Kate (June Squibb) and his like minded older brother Ross (Bob Odenkirk), exasperated David decides to take a gentle, indulgent approach with his father and let him see for himself that the letter isn’t what he thinks.
The purpose of the trip in Nebraska may be to find out about this million dollars, but the film’s story is really about family, specifically about the relationship between adult children and their aging parents. It’s an interesting concept which has been explored a few times before in major films like Make Way for Tomorrow, Harry and Tonto, and even Payne’s About Schmidt. But the difference in Nebraska is the fact that this time the story is the child’s perspective rather than the parents. It may seem a small difference, but this perspective changes everything, and adds a depth and relatability to the film for the countless children and grandchild who watch the old lose their faculties and try to not only care for them, but offer some sense of dignity with age.
Nebraska really is about two very different, small journeys – one physical, one internal. Woody’s one goal, a compulsion really, is to get to Lincoln, Nebraska at any cost. It is a ridiculous desire which is played for laughs, until the reason of his compulsion becomes clear. And then it’s absolutely heartbreaking. In fact, it is one of the great pieces of partnered acting in recent years, and Dern and Forte play it with subtly and truth. But this is also David’s journey to understand who he is in connection to his family, specifically as the son of his father. He’s the baby, not only of his immediate family, but also the extended. He’s the sensitive one who wants nothing more than to talk things out, get some fatherly advice and family history, before it’s too late. But his father won’t give what he never recieved himself, and rebuffs every attempt David makes to connect. While others would retreat and give up on Woody or respond in anger (as both wife Kate and son Ross do), David simply continues to wear his heart on his sleeve and accept his father’s lack of emotional connection and warmth as part of his personality
David has patience for people, including his father, but with that comes the weight of every rejection and disappointment, a quality David shares with his father. It’s remarkable, and a credit to both Dern and Forte, how subtly they establish the father-son connection and more specifically, the fact that David is more his father’s son than he even wants to admit. From drinking, to their sense of humor, to their generosity, they share a special bond. And this connection between David and Woody is cemented when compared to how Grant and Kate behave, a bit more forthright and cynical.
Nebraska will likely struggle at the box-office, being a black-and-white movie with two unproven stars, but it has great potential of being a sleeper and will likely be an awards contender. Not only because it is from Oscar favorite Alexander Payne, but because it’s commentary about gender, family, and age are issues which are universal, and addressed in refreshing, humorous, and heartfelt ways, which will likely bring audiences together. Emotionally, the movie strikes a cord as a portrait of a very real, and specific, family.
With its blend of comedy and drama, and timeless sense of realism, and it’s humanistic approach, I can see Nebraska becoming the father-son counterpoint to Terms of Endearment. Both of these films embrace the fact that the more specific you are with the details in a film, the more universal it’s appeal. It wouldn’t be surprising if Nebraska proves to be bonding experience for families, considering the emotional reaction I saw from some in the audience who spoke of how the film reminded them of their own fathers and grandfathers.
What I do know however is that the movie is near perfect in it’s execution, tone, and performances…and I can’t wait to share Nebraska with my own family. source: http://prettycleverfilms.com/movie-reviews/modern-times/nyff-review-nebraska-2013/#.UoVcICdwy0w
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