And we're back with yet another Oscar Film Journal entry, here at Enuffa.com!
I'm circling back to the 2010s, to a film I meant to watch at the time but never got around to, it's Alexander Payne's comedy-drama Nebraska, starring Bruce Dern and Will Forte. Nebraska is a road movie of sorts, about a crotchety septuagenarian named Woody who's convinced he's won a million dollars through the Publisher's Clearinghouse Sweepstakes and insists on traveling from his home in Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska to collect the winnings. Initially he thinks he can make the trek on foot, but the police pick him up wandering down the freeway, and despite numerous attempts by his two sons (Forte and Bob Odenkirk) and his hilariously fed up wife Kate (a brilliantly cast June Squibb) to convince him it's all a scam, he refuses to let it go. Thus his younger son David agrees to drive him to the company's headquarters and find out for sure (Woody doesn't trust the mail system so that's a non-starter). David knows there's nothing at the end of this particular rainbow but sees the trip as a chance to spend quality time with his emotionally distant father. Woody quickly lets his drinking get the better of him, falling and hitting his head, and the pair decide to hole up for a few days in Hawthorne, NE, with Woody's brother Ray. While in Hawthorne they run afoul of Woody's ex-business partner-turned nemesis Ed (a slimy Stacy Keach, recalling his turn in American History X), who upon learning of Woody's alleged newfound wealth attempts to extort David out of some cash (For that matter, so do several of Woody's relatives).
Payne's films have a unique vibe to them, one I like to call "bottle of wine" films. Along with certain Coen Brothers films and a others like 2009's Up in the Air, an Alexander Payne film feels like an immersive journey you take alongside the characters. His other films Sideways, The Descendants and The Holdovers take advantage of the "voodoo of location" and really make you feel like you're transported to these locales and you get to take your time exploring them (while enjoying a bottle of wine, of course). Nebraska was like that for me as well; we spend a lot of time in Hawthorne, a run-down community that looks like a holdover of one of those old Western towns with one little strip of stores and town buildings and not much else (I felt echoes of The Last Picture Show). There's something oddly comforting about a spot like this; everyone knows each other, they all frequent the same couple of bars and restaurants, and there's little to do for fun but down a bunch of cheap beer and sing karaoke. The town's inhabitants feel like real people and even the handful of known actors disappear into these quiet little characters. This would be a fascinating place to visit.
Bruce Dern's Oscar-nominated turn is one of the best of his career. Woody has very little to say and is often so lost in his own head he doesn't even hear what others say to him, but Dern perfectly conveys his annoyance and fatigue at ever having to express to others what he's thinking. As an introvert myself I can identify with how strenuous it can be to have a conversation when you really don't want one. Will Forte's performance as Woody's underappreciated son is minimalistic but effective; one of his specialties as an SNL cast member was awkward silence, and that skill serves him quite well in dramatic situations too. June Squibb as I mentioned before is fantastic; like so many old married couples who are fresh out of patience for each other, Kate spares no one's feelings and has no use for tact. Squibb also received a well-deserved Oscar nod.
The film's best attribute though might be Payne's choice to shoot in black and white, heightening the drabness of these midwestern towns and the folks who live in them. The colorless sameness of everything, even the stunning natural scenery, is part of the point. When news of Woody's apparent winnings gets out the entire town seems to take an interest, after all, what else is there to talk about? The noir-esque way this film is lit and photographed by veteran cameraman Phedon Papamichael would've kept my attention even if the story didn't work.
But fortunately it does work, exploring familial relationships and the idea that hope is important, even if it's futile. Woody must know on some level he hasn't actually won a million dollars, but he needs to find out for sure anyway. The journey is a reason for him to get up in the morning, even if the destination doesn't deliver on its promise. And even more importantly, it gives him a reason to connect with his family.
I give Nebraska ***1/2 out of ****.
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