Nebraska

Plot synopsis:
An old man walks along the snowy roads of Billings, Montana. A police officer stops him. The man seems aimless.David picks up the old man, his father Woody, at the police station. Woody explains that he was walking to Lincoln, Nebraska, to collect a million dollars he won in a mail order sweepstakes. David explains that these sweepstakes are scams, but Woody says this one must be genuine.When they arrive at Woody's house, his wife Kate scolds him for believing in the contest.David, who sells stereo equipment at a local store, later comes back to his parents' house because his mother and older brother Ross are distressed that Woody has again wondered off on a long walk. Ross tries to convince David that Woody needs to be put in a nursing home, and David thinks he just needs more family support.David's ex-girlfriend stops by his apartment to drop off a few things. He asks her to move back in, but she is frustrated by his lack of direction in their relationship.Kate calls David to go searching for Woody, who is again out walking the streets of Billings. They argue, and Woody asks David to drive him to Nebraska.Kate yells at David for planning to go through with this plan.David and Woody drive southeast into Wyoming. While David gets gas at a stop, Woody wonders off to a bar. David finds him and chastises him for drinking.David and Woody drive further into South Dakota, where David suggests they stop to see Mount Rushmore. Woody stands and looks at the monument, but he is unimpressed.They stop that night at a motel. Woody goes out and comes back drunk. He falls, revealing a wound in his forehead.David takes Woody to a hospital for stitches. Woody realizes he lost his false teeth. The doctor tells him he needs a few days to rest and be monitored.David tells Woody that they can stay in Hawthorne with Uncle Ray and Aunt Martha. Woody does not want to go.David and Woody find his false teeth along some railroad tracks where he fell the night before. They joke about whether they are his real teeth.They make it to Hawthone, Nebraska, Woody's hometown, with a population of 1,358. They have not been there in a few decades. Aunt Martha is welcoming, but Woody's brother Ray and his two degenerate sons, Bart and Cole, are not very excited to see them. David discusses driving distances and travel times with Bart and Cole.They all make small talk and watch television.David walks into the dying downtown with Woody. They stop at a garage that Woody used to own, but he does not know the current workers. They go to a bar, where Woody has a beer and David complains about his drinking, saying he has tried to give it up himself. David relents and has a few beers with Woody as more customers come in.David tells Woody that he broke up with his girlfriend. David asks his father about his marriage, and Woody has little to say. David complains more about Woody's drinking, and Woody defends himself, getting angry and walking out.Woody sees another bar and David follows him in. They meet Ed, a gregarious man whom Woody claims stole his air compressor years ago. David warns Woody to not mention the sweepstakes to Ed and the guys, but he promptly does anyway. Ed and the guys tell Woody he is buying the next round of drinks.They drive home, and Woody boasts about how impressed the guys were.The two have breakfast with the family the next morning, and they have heard about the sweepstakes. David tries to dispel the rumor, but they still assume it is true.Kate arrives by bus and scolds David and Woody for their misadventure.The three go out to a cemetery and look at grave markers. Kate tells many critical stories about dead family members. She comes across the grave of an old suitor, pulls up her skirt, and shows him what he could have had.A boy from the local newspaper comes by to take Woody's photograph for a news story.David goes to the newspaper office to explain to the editor that Woody did not actually win any sweepstakes. She happens to be Woody's ex-girlfriend from their youth, and chats up David, allowing him to look in a very old edition about his dad's service in the Korean War. She says she'll just write a simple story about Woody and Kate visiting town.David goes to dinner with Woody and Kate, where they see Ed singing karaoke. Ed calls out to Woody to stand up, and the whole restaurant applauds. Later Ed approaches David in the bathroom and makes it clear that he expects to be repaid for money he loaned Woody years earlier. David insists that Woody did not win any money, but Ed does not believe him.Some of Woody's many brothers come over to visit the next day and watch football. Ross arrives, and everyone has dinner. Ross and Kate try to dispel the rumor that Woody won a million dollars. Woody says that all he wants is a new truck and an air compressor.An aunt and cousin approach David and Ross to ask for money that they loaned to Woody over the years, then Cole and Bart join in. Ross once again tries to explain that Woody did not win any money, and the cousins begin fighting. Kate walks out and tells them off.David and Ross drive their parents out to the old family homestead, which is an abandoned house on a barren farm. They walk around the empty rooms, and Woody recalls growing up there.As they drive outside of town, Kate says she sees Ed's house. David and Ross get the idea of looking in his barn and taking back Woody's compressor. After they load the compressor in the car, Woody tells them they went to the wrong house, so they take it back. Just then, as David and Ross hide in their barn, the homeowners show up, surprised to find Woody and Kate. They make small talk, and Kate drives away, leaving their sons to chase after them on foot.David and Woody go to a bar in town. Ed confronts Woody and asks him to pay back $10,000. Woody says he does not have the money yet, and Ed tells the story of when Woody wanted to leave Kate early in their marriage.Cole and Bart, poorly disguised, mug David and Woody outside the bar, stealing Woody's sweepstakes letter. David confronts them back at the house, and they say they threw it away when they realized it was bogus.David tries to make Woody feel better by looking for the letter back in town. They go into the bar and find Ed reading the sweepstakes letter to a small crowd, with everyone laughing. Woody takes the letter back from Ed, who realizes that Woody believes it. Before he leaves, David slugs Ed in the face.David finds Woody outside, dizzy and having breathing trouble. David tells him they are not going on to Lincoln. Woody says he just wanted the money for a new pickup truck, and to leave something for his sons. David drives Woody to the hospital after he faints.Ross and Kate meet David at the hospital, who tells them Woody will be kept overnight. Ross says he will drive Kate home in the morning. David spends the night in Woody's hospital room.David wakes up to find Woody missing, then discovers him walking along the road outside the hospital. He picks him up, and the two drive on to Lincoln.They make their way to the nondescript marketing office for the sweepstakes, where a secretary informs them that Woody does not have a winning number. She offers Woody a complementary hat. David asks the secretary if this happens a lot, and she says usually with older people.She asks David, "Does he have Alzheimer's?" David replies, "He just believes stuff that people tell him." She responds, "Oh, that's too bad."David stops at a car dealer on the way out of town and trades in his car for a pickup truck. Then he drives Woody to a store and buys him a new air compressor.On the way back west, they drive into Hawthorne. David stops in the middle of the main street and tells his dad to drive the truck, which he has put in his name. Woody drives through the dying downtown, and tells David to hide. He sees an old friend, and Ed with a welt on his face, as well as his old girlfriend from the newspaper. He drives past his brother Albert and waves.On the edge of town, Woody gets out of the truck and lets David continue driving them westward.

Tags: entertaining

Review:
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).
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.
" 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 .
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.
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.
"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.
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.
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.
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.
"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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
But its beautiful and I love the way Payne tells the heart warming story of an old man and his son and the son fulfilling a crazy desire of his father.The movie captures the emotions of people and beautifully tells us how people change when they see the need in us.Burce Dern is fantastic as the old man running after something which doesn't exist.
And while there are some bright spots in this father/son road trip movie that range from touching to smirk-inducing, there isn't enough here to allow "Nebraska" to come off as anything more than a minor disappointment.Synopsis: A half-senile old man looking for something to live for, attempts to convince his son and others that he has won a million dollars in a sweepstakes and must travel to Nebraska to claim it.
Finally, Bob Odenkirk better known as Saul from Breaking Bad plays a good performance as David's little brother, Ross.Overall, Nebraska is a poignant film about the bonding of father and son and shows this can happen at any age.
He learns from his mother that his father was on his way to Lincoln, Nebraska (Woody lives in Montana) to pick up a million dollars he believes he has won in a junk mail sales scam.
In his stubbornness, Woody convinces David to drive him to Lincoln, and David, having lived most of his life in the shadow of his small-town news anchor brother Ross (Bob Odenkirk), sees a chance to spend some time with the father he doesn't really know.Like most Payne efforts, Nebraska is low on plot but high on humanity.
Woody says "I figured, what the hell," and when David asks him if he was ever sorry he married her, he replies "all the time." It's a desperately sad and honest portrayal of a man helpless in his regret.Yet, like most of Payne's films, Nebraska is also very funny.
Though the entire cast gives great performances, the standouts were Bruce Dern (who got a well-deserved win at Cannes last year), Will Forte and (to my surprise, although I didn't have any expectations going in) June Squibb as Woody's long-suffering wife.
Written by Bob Nelson & directed by Alexander Payne (Sideways & The Descendants), Nebraska is the story of an aging, alcoholic father named Woody who takes a road-trip from Montana to Nebraska with his son, David, to collect a million dollar prize he thinks he won.
The music has a country feel & some tracks are just heartwarming.Coming to the acting department, Bruce Dern delivers a swashbuckling performance as Woody Grant; a slightly demented father who is hellbent on going to Nebraska & as the story progresses we get to see a tragic side of this old man too.
The best thing about this film is definitely its performances spearheaded by Bruce Dern & greatly supported by Forte & Squibb and hilariously explores the relationship between an estranged father & confused son whose once stale relationship finds a new life on a pointless road-trip to Nebraska.
The film is also quite emotionally intense at times, due to the simple premise leading to a lot of complicated conflicts-and the ending, which I will not spoil, is surprisingly heartwarming and satisfying.Bruce Dern is simply fantastic in this movie, playing a confused old klutz that receives a letter claiming that he has won a million dollars.
As Woody says, "Just wanted to leave you something...." So true, so true.Brilliant casting - Dern, Stacy Keach, Rance Howard, June Squibb, Will Forte et al - the crew, writer Bob Nelson and director Alexander Payne have created a gem - not to be missed..
It's all tinged with sadness, but also with goodness, and the experience is warm and if not quite dull, at least considering it.The two leading men are terrific: Bruce Dern as the father with just enough alertness and physical strength to want to collect the million dollars he things he won from a publisher's scam, and Will Forte as his son, who is the one family member left with some patience for the dad.
As for me and my lovely wife, we both had a very nice time watching this strange slice of life film.Bruce Dern plays Woody Grant--a somewhat confused old man who insists he's won a million dollars from a Publisher's Clearinghouse type of giveaway.
Bruce Dern will probably not win an Oscar as this film is too sentimental but both he and all the other actors including his 'wife' June Squibb and his son Will Forte especially and (better call Saul!) Bob Odenkirk are amazing.
An aging, booze-addled father (Bruce Dern) makes the trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son (Will Forte) in order to claim a million-dollar Mega Sweepstakes Marketing prize.This film has been also nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director for Alexander Payne, Best Actor for Dern, Best Supporting Actress for June Squibb, and Best Original Screenplay.
From the beautiful black and white photography, to performances from Bruce Dern, Will Forte, Stacy Keach and Bob Odenkirk to a touching story told in a way totally avoiding the usual cliches of family dramas.
the cast is Bruce Dern this very well in the film, Will Forte is an actor of comedy, more can very well make dramatic scenes June Squibb, Bob Odenkirk, Stacy Keach, Rance Howard, etc., the direction is Alexander Payne who made the Descendants, which is very good, I cool the film is black and white, it's a good atmosphere for the film, the photography is excellent, but I found the script a little scuffed, even though competent, has some silly mistakes I found the film a little longer than it should, in my opinion one hour and a half was more than enough, two hours was a bit tiring, even hitting making brief explanations, Nebraska is a recommendable film, has good, even in my opinion being longer than it should.
Woody's son David (Will Forte) is compelled to join his father in his journey, to both watch after the old man's increasingly errant behavior and spend some time with him in what could be one of their last ventures beyond the town's borders.Bruce Dern is the unquestioned star of Nebraska in his understated portrayal of a man from a bygone era.
The witty dialog, the realism, the diverse characters, and the touching story, as well as the superb acting by the entire cast, including Oscar-nominees Bruce Dern and June Squibb for their roles here and Will Forte playing a non-comedic role, push this film beyond anyone's expectations.
Dig a little deeper and we find a fascinating and subtle commentary on the undercurrent of economic struggles sweeping across small-town America and yet, at its center, Nebraska is a sweet, hopeful, heart-warming film.The story follows thirty-something year old David, working in a local electrics store, going through some sort of break up; and his Father Woody, a doddery alcoholic who begins to lose his grip on reality when he swallows a scam telling him he's won a million dollars.
Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) is an elderly man with the beginnings of dementia who receives a Sweepstakes Letter that he believes entitles him to a million dollars if he can get it to Lincoln Nebraska in time.
He is so insistent that he has won, despite the pleas of others that it is a scam, that his son David (Will Forte) decides to drive him all the way to Lincoln so that he will know once and for all that it is not in fact a winning ticket.During the trip we meet many of Woody's family and old friends, and David hears many stories of his father's past.
In Nebraska, he takes a gem of a screenplay by Bob Nelson about a fateful road trip and elicits strong performances from a terrific cast.An elderly man, Woody Grant (Bruce Dern), is determined to travel cross country from Billings, Montana, to Lincoln, Nebraska, to claim a million dollar prize despite the objections of his wife Kate (June Squibb) and skeptical son, David (Will Forte).
He portrays excellence by choosing his hometown Nebraska as the center of the film.Nebraska tells the story of old-aged, alcoholic suffering from dementia who travels with his son on a road trip from Montana to Nebraska to claim a million dollar prize.It is always a pleasure to watch Alexander Payne's film ( Sideways, The Descendants )as he has mastered the effective introduction of each character as the movie progress.
Despite his younger son David (Will Forte) knowing it is scam agrees to take his father from Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska, visiting Woody's old home town and send time with his family.Nebraska is brilliantly acted film, particularly from Dern who is deserving of his Oscar nomination, being believable as a man who is no longer quite with it and becomes more sympathetic during the course of the film.
To collect his winnings, he is walking to Lincoln, Nebraska, telling his son David (Will Forte), that he's not "trusting the mail with one million dollars!" Filmed in black and white and set to a "down-home" guitar score by Mark Orton, Woody seems to parallel the director's experience with his own father.