Nebraska

"I never knew the son of a bitch even wanted to be a millionaire! He should have thought about that years ago and worked for it!"

Woody Grant (Dern) is determined to go to Lincoln, Nebraska to collect $1 million he won in a sweepstakes, by any means necessary.  The letter Wood received, which is always with him, is a mail scam to promote purchasing magazines.  Woody refuses to listen to his exasperated wife, Kate (Squibb), and sons, Ross (Odenkirk) and David (Forte).  Kate and Ross want to place Woody in a retirement home, since his persistent alcohol abuse is messing with his mind.  David is against the plan and agrees to drive Woody to Lincoln.

Woody is a man of few words, but is adamant that they reach Lincoln as soon as possible.  Along the way they stay a few days in Woody's home town of Hawthorne, Nebraska, staying with Woody's brother Ray (Rance Howard).  Soon everyone in town knows about Woody's winnings and everyone wants a piece of the money... even though David tries to convince everyone that there is no money.


This is one of the few Oscar nominated films that I was really excited to see.  I loved that it was filmed in black and white, and I enjoyed director Alexander Payne's film The Descendants.  I had high expectations for the film and was thrilled when it finally became available to rent.

I love this film!  The black and white film is beautiful, with incredible cinematography (which is nominated for an Oscar).  The story (which is nominated for an Oscar for "Best Original Screenplay"), is compelling - heartbreaking and funny.  I love the way AFI explains the film (which was considered one of the Top Ten films of 2013):

paints a stark portrait of Midwestern America – a Rockwell drained of both color and nostalgia, but nonetheless infused with astounding depth and sentiment. Shadows cast with austere beauty by director Alexander Payne reveal innumerable shades of gray in the film's characters – evoking empathy, if not sympathy, for an embittered family on an unlikely pilgrimage

The story is accentuated by the stellar performances of the cast.  Bruce Dern is great as Woody.  For a man that became a household name for playing interesting bit parts, he is the perfect lead for this film.  He leads the film without saying much, making the words he actually says even more powerful.  Will Forte, best known for his time on Saturday Night Live, may not be the conventional choice here, but he is great.  You believe he is the character.  My favorite character was June Squibb's Kate.  She is hilarious and lights up the screen.  Hopefully she will appear in even more films in the future.  Stacy Keach is the perfect slimy character and Bob Odenkirk is great, as usual.  I loved all the scenes with Woody's brothers, all men of few words, especially Rance Howard (father of Ron Howard and Clint Howard) as Uncle Ray.

Dern and Squibb are nominated for Oscars for their performances, as is director Alexander Payne, and the film itself, giving it 6 total nominations.  The film isn't as flashy or political or historical, but it is a beautiful film that ends on a hopeful note.  My favorite, non-animated, film for this year's Oscars.  It probably won't win a lot, but it was a great film.

Nebraska (2013) 115 minutes
Rating: R for some language
Director: Alexander Payne
Starring: Bruce Dern as Woody Grant
Will Forte as David Grant
June Squibb as Kate Grant
Bob Odenkirk as Ross Grant
Stacy Keach as Ed Pegram