Colton of The Daily Rotation wrote, "In the opening scene of Alexander Payne‘s bucolic black-and-white film Nebraska, an elderly, scruffy-haired alcoholic named Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) sluggishly, but unyieldingly walks on the side of the interstate. One would think that he’s lost and just trying to find his way home, but in fact, that isn’t the case whatsoever. This is one of many attempted escapes from his home in Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska so he can claim a million-dollar sweepstakes prize he received in the mail, which he’ll use to purchase an air compressor and a new truck even though he can no longer drive. Ignoring the warning signs that the prize is a scam, Woody is insistent on making his way to Lincoln and its his insistency that puts the small-scale, but beautifully engaging and character-driven narrative of Nebraska into gear."
A black and white film can be a hard sell in Hollywood these days, but for a film like Nebraska, it's hard to imagine it any other way. Director Alexander Payne and writer Bob Nelson's story about what happens when a son who never really knew his father finds out more than he could every imagine rings true with its sharp writing and painfully honest portrayals of family relationships, and its impact is only heightened by the monochromatic aesthetic. The Blu-ray release flaunts a striking A/V presentation that doesn't water down the film's beautiful cinematography, and the special features — though brief — are nonetheless insightful, making Nebraska on Blu-ray well worth crossing state lines for.
NWTV: Nebraska is a blissful poignant satire on the romanticizing of the past and the paradise of the small community.
Welcome to the 24th weekly Hollywood Huddle! Tony Mendiola joins us this week, and with him we discuss all of our Golden Globe picks. On top of that, well let’s just say we discuss a broad range of movies and television, all in a 50 minutes timespan. So sit back, and enjoy!
