The Bucket List

Greetings again from the darkness. Yes, this can be viewed as Hollywood formula with mass appeal and loads of stereotypes and clichés. On the other hand, it can be taken as a very accessible commentary on friendship, companionship and finding the joy in life. I prefer the latter. Either way, it does require a certain suspension of reality. Just ask Roger Ebert, who has made it his personal mission to bash the film.

Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman are both in prime form, and after a string of weak films, director Rob Reiner does a masterful job of keeping Nicholson from going over the top and from having Freeman kill us with sweetness. Even more impressive is the pacing of the early hospital scenes ... nothing is forced, no line of dialogue or shot seems hurried. This is two patients coming to grips with their situation. While the worldly travels are impressive, my favorite parts of the film are the scenes between the two beds in the same room.

On the downside, will someone please tell Hollywood that Morgan Freeman in the cast does not mandate a blasted voice-over from the man? We know he has a great voice, but if the narration adds nothing to the story, please just let the film do its thing.

There are some laugh out loud moments and one-liners, but there are also some strong moments of drama ... death has a way of creating those. This is a combination of road trip, buddy film and coming-of-age ... very unusual for two senior citizens! So while the story line surprises are few, sit back and enjoy excellent acting (including Sean Hayes), wonderful direction and a few life lessons. Good stuff for a movie that all ages can enjoy.

"The tragedy of old age is not that one is old, but that one is young." Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

Now and then I should rethink what I've been learning all these years as a critic because I predicted The Bucket List would have all kinds of holes in it. It did, but they were tiny blemishes in an otherwise solid frame. This is a good movie, as much silly as serious. And therein lies the skill of director Rob Reiner, who makes sure Jack doesn't kill the lines with bluster and Morgan doesn't drown them in vocal sweetness.

Edward (Nicholson) and Carter (Freeman) meet in hospital where they have been given less than a year to live because of cancer. They bond, create the "kick-the-bucket" list of ten things to do before dying, and then do them. The hokey process shots at several of the world's wonders indicate the surety of Reiner's direction where he evokes the old Hope and Crosby road pictures and emphasizes that the journey is the important thing, not the destination.

Both men laugh and cry and change in subtle ways that make this not a maudlin exercise in death denial but rather a celebration of love through friendship, regardless of the grim future. Although Justin Zachman's script is overall weak given the actors' worth, there are lines that save it all from mediocrity: As Edward the cynic says, "We live, we die, and the wheels on the bus go round and round." As Carter the humanist says, "You measure yourself by the people who measure themselves by you." The two philosophies, fate and love, caress in a slow dance to recognition of life's true value.

The Bucket List is not half as sappy as I sound so far; it is a sober rendering of life's lessons at the end by two different men who find their common humanity.

The quiet mechanic Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman) is a man with a great general culture; has been married for forty-five years with his beloved wife Virginia (Beverly Todd) and has two sons – one lawyer the other engineer – and a violinist daughter. The caustic and bitter billionaire Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson) owns many hospitals, has many divorces and one missing daughter. Following the policy of Edward, his hospital makes no exception giving a private room to him and he shares the same room as Carter. Along the days, they become close to each other and when Edward finds in the garbage the bucket list that Carter had prepared, listing all he wanted to do before dying, he includes his own items and invites Carter to a journey of friendship, discoveries and redemption.

"The Bucket List" has a wonderful screenplay, two fantastic actors and a predictable story about the journey of two terminal patients with cancer that find friendship, discoveries and redemption. The contrast between the two lead characters offers very beautiful moments with witty and spirituous dialogs alternating with funny and dramatic scenes. This is one of those movies that bring happiness to the viewer in spite of the unpleasant theme – illness and death. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Antes de Partir" ("Before Leaving")

Usually I'm not into these kinds of movies, but with the casting of Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman I had to see it. I'm really glad that I decided to give this a try.

The story is quite predictable, but I still enjoyed it. Never mind how impossible the storyline is because it is a great movie about friendship - how two men become great friends in a short time and help each other out throughout the time they are together. It moves along at a smooth pace and I never got bored, so the writer gets credit for that. The acting was top notch as Nicholson and Freeman draw forth the right emotion in the audience at the right time. The emotional parts are done just right, but the funny scenes are the best. I laughed throughout the movie but not as much as I would in a true comedy movie, but the comic scenes in this one really work and Nicholson is the "main man" in them. It does have a message at the end about how you should live your life to the fullest, how your family is important, and how you should be happy in life and the movie delivers that message perfectly.

Other than the predictable storyline and the sometimes cheesy dialog, the movie is great. I would recommend it to anyone that is looking for a feel-good movie.

8/10

"The Bucket List" is certainly a sentimental favorite that as a viewer touches your emotions and has you hoping for finding a friendship in the end, even though the film is funny and somewhat unrealistic. The performances from Jack and Morgan as expected are top notch, and I personally like Rob Reiner's direction of showing how an unlikely and odd friendship develops between two guys on their way out of life by doing the things they've always wanted. The "Bucket List" in many respects is a good happy fairy tale that most ordinary folks would dream about before they die, yet the character types played by Nicholson and Freeman make it so believable.

Jack Nicholson is billionaire hospital CEO administrator Edward Cole who as a grumpy and aging four time divorced playboy finds he has terminal cancer. With Freeman a character that's much different a blue collar working class auto mechanic named Carter Chambers who's a loving family man with a wife and kids and on the side a beloved history buff and trivia enthusiast yet he discovers his fate of having terminal cancer. Upon meeting in the same hospital room they share at first it's a cold and tough bonding only later to grow into a friendship by journey and discovery. The concept is thought up by Chambers by making a list called "The Bucket List" of things to do before we die. Oddly opposites agree the journey starts. The adventures include the heart pumping sky diving, auto drag racing, and trips to exotic locations and foreign countries. Many scenes like the mountain tops and pyramids seem unreal, yet are carried on by the witty and funny lines from Jack's character.

Most important aside from the journey and discovery of friendship and caring by travel and adventure a special bond is formed. Each has learned before they meet the end they have made each a better person that cares they both found what's important in life thru one another. "The Bucket List" isn't really a tear jerker, yet it's story of two terminal cancer patients provides the need for compassion as the viewer feels pain during the early scenes and you are certainly touched by the way the characters emotions grow by friendship you as the viewer feel your emotions have taken a good friendship journey. Finally this film is made even better by the performances of the two veteran legends Nicholson and Freeman. I highly recommend anyone view "The Bucket List".