Alexander Payne is a master, with the incisive, bittersweet Election, About Schmidt, Sideways and masterful five minute short 14e Arrondisement, for Paris, Je t'aime behind his name to prove it. Count me in as very excited for his latest, The Descendants.
Sasha Stone caught an early screening at Telluride film fest, and posted her feedback via Awards Daily. The good news is that The Descendants is apparently "as good as Sideways" and "George Clooney's best performance".
George Clooney & director Alexander Payne have teamed up for Payne's latest film, The Descendants, an adaptation of Kaui Hart Hemmings' tragicomic novel of the same name.
The premise is simple - 'a land baron tries to connect with his two daughters after his wife suffers a boating accident' (thanks, IMDB.com) - but the combination of Clooney, Payne, tragicomedy & distributor Fox Searchlight promises very good things indeed.
Clooney is on a winning career-streak where he can do almost no wrong, Payne's films (Citizen Ruth, Election, About Schmidt, Sideways & his glorious 5 minute segment 14e Arrondissement in Paris, Je t'Aime) have gone from excellent to flawless, and never fail to deliver pitch perfect, heavily flawed characters & a perfect balance of challenging drama & insanely funny entertainment (depending on what mood you're in).
Fox Searchlight has a knack for picking winners lately (Little Miss Sunshine, Juno, Slumdog Millionaire...) so keep your eyes on this one.
