Film Review: Nebraska (15) (U.S.A. 2013) (Director: Alexander Payne),  The Cameo Cinema Screen One, Edinburgh, Saturday 07.12.2013, 20:00

This is film is by the same director who made 'About Schmidt' (2002), 'Sideways' (2004) & 'The Descendants' (2012). Of these I greatly enjoyed About Schmidt, though I do have soft spot for Jack Nicholson, I found Sideways annoying and The Descendants I was not attracted to as it has 'Gorgeous' George Clooney in it. I was attracted to see this one due to the main character being played by Bruce Dern.

The film centres around an older coot of a gentleman Woody Grant, played by Bruce Dern, who believes one of these pieces of junk mail that tells him he has won $1,000,000. He is no longer allowed to drive and at the beginning of the film we see him walking along busy roads on-route across two states to collect his winnings. This then becomes a means to have him and family (as well as wider acquaintances) to come together to reminisce on days past. With others believing him to come into a substantial sum of money, old scores get aired along with requests/demands for money. Towards the end of the film, the son who has tried to assist Woody throughout the film, becomes very generous towards him, in a way I found to be a bit of a stretch.

The film is gently paced and it has a couple of fine performances from Bruce Dern as the bull-headed full-hardy old codger, though even greater for comic relief is June Squibb as his long suffering wife. She has some fantastically funny moments and her character is an absolute joy.The film may have been a lot more difficult without her as relief to Woody's doggedly confused state.      

Rating: 07/10.