Nebraska

Nebraska
(2013) [Trailer]
Director: Alexander Payne [IMDB]

I've been to Nebraska on a few occasions in my lifetime. Whenever my travels would have me passing through the cornhusker state I would think to myself "I'm glad I don't live here." The only place that's tolerable there is Omaha, and maybe Lincoln, but outside of that, there's not much. I always find myself wondering who would decide to live in these towns you find yourself looking at, spread out between the farmland on your way out of Omaha. To be far though, I say that about any place outside a major city, in any state. Well Alexander Payne decided to tell you a story about those people. Let's see how good it is.

Synopsis: An old fart hits, what he believes, is the jackpot when he receives a letter in the mail stating he won a million dollars. He decides to head down to Lincoln to retrieve his winnings.

While watching Nebraska I was immediately reminded of David Lynch's The Straight Story, but in black and white. Payne does a fantastic job at bringing you into the story and into the setting of the film. The characters were all pretty believable and the performances were all decent, with the best one coming from Bruce Dern. Before watching Nebraska, I thought the comedy may come from showing you how absurd these hayseeds were going to be, which would be too easy. While there is a little of that (the two cousins mainly), Nebraska is relatable and the laughs just come from good writing. The score is subdued and pleasant, while the cinematography was bold but impressionistic at times. In the end, the whole package fit nicely together.

I really enjoyed Nebraska and felt the ending was perfect. It left me with happy feelings... I hate those stupid happy feelings. It's well worth your time and I believe it will be out on blu-ray by the end of the month.