Nebraska

I had a bumper special of Oscar-bait viewing today, I watched Her and Nebraska, out of the two, unsurprisingly for my delectation for sobbing over the ageing population meant that the latter had the deeper affect on me. We've probably been over this before, but there is a litany of things that make me cry in this world, ranging from emotional trauma to a slight breeze on my face, I just seem to have an over-active set of tear-ducts. I made my peace with my penchant for sobbing long ago. There are few films on this planet that make me cry like a baby, obviously Titanic but that was because everyone else was and it the shot of the old couple lying on their together as the room filled with water that truly set me off without fail.

I could say that it was most likely my grandmother's habit of sitting down me on the couch when I stayed over and describing her funeral to me, what jewellery she would be leaving for me, how it's inevitable that she would die, it got to a point where I was terrified of her dying at any given moment, she was frail and indescribably sad, something which was odd for me as a child because she never explicitly said it but I could feel it and I couldn't understand what would make her feel better. Then there was the fact I grew into an ignorant teenager and saw less and less of her and felt guilt and shame when she passed away for not making my unwavering love and affection for her more known. Old people always me feel so sad; not so much because of their proximity to death, although that definitely hurts, it's because they have lived for so long, gathered so much experience and memories, and then they begin to lose everything. I feel like I'm generalising but with the older, more wrinkled generation, they are largely overlooked, forgotten, they gradually lose their functions, things aren't as easy as they used to be, people don't notice them, don't care about them, ignore them, they are no longer important. I just hate that along with your ability to hear, walk and remember, you lose the respect of others, perhaps not in the most obvious of ways but younger people look at you and say 'Awww, look at the little old dear.' This little old dear has more life experience in her thumb than you have in your whole body, don't talk down to her!

Nebraska is a film about a man who has sunk into old age and is grappling with the prospect of his demise by clinging to some bizarre belief that he has won one million dollars. Straight off the bat, it's clearly a scam, but his belief and his unwavering desire to obtain his winnings make the core of the film. As the film unfurls around you, you find, he's either forgotten or he never really cared about much to start with, it would seem odd that he was so obsessed with getting this money; particularly as his main concerns are simply buying a new truck and an air condenser (no idea....) As it goes the whole film is about his journey to get the money which means stopping off at his home town after a minor accident to recuperate and see his past paraded in front of him and everyone wanting a piece of his non-existent winnings.

The film itself is anchored by Will Forte (who is simply wonderful) playing the part of doting son who can't really say no to his old dad,  and Bruce Dern anchoring the film as Woody, an ageing man who's 'easily confused' convincing himself and pretty much everyone around him that he's a newly minted millionaire. Bob Odenkirk also turns up having a brief breather before Saul Goodman goes back in time and back in business. June Squibb essentially walks in and steals the show for me playing Woody's beleaguered wife Kate, she just feels so familiar but so much like her own cutting cold but brilliant character, plus she'll rant forever about how useless her husband is and how he'll outlive them all but I swear there is some affection there even after everything he's put her through, it was a beautiful performance.

Tellingly it's shot entirely in black and white, could be an homage to older simpler times, which are alluded to frequently as we learn more about Woody's past, but then again things aren't ever that simple. The music is typically old style movie music, it has that indie-vibe about it but it never feels out of place as the film trundles along. The whole middle-America, small town everyone knowing eachothers business, nothing having changed much since the 70s, it had a distinct style and definitely one of Alexander Payne's best films since Sideways, if not infinitely better in my humblest of opinions; probably because of the weepy emotional reaction it got from me...

Speaking of which it was the last sequence of scenes that set me off on my blubbering frenzy, if you're not up for spoilers look away now.

When Woody asks his son if the prize people got back to them I literally began bawling as his son shows him his new truck. Then he lets his Dad drive down the main street through town in his new truck, his Dad makes him hide as he goes, the characters we met through the film see Woody driving triumphantly through the town in his new truck, independent and capable, with something to show for his journey, a winner. I was literally wailing at this point as I realised that's how Woody wanted it, after all, this was, in his eyes the last time he'd be in that old town of his, that's the last time those people would see him and he wanted it to be on his terms with his triumph; and hey there's his son beaming up at him from his crouching position having given his father this moment of pride. Well shit man, I was a mess.

I genuinely couldn't care less what anyone else thought of this film, I simply thought it was excellent, because it told me a story that I felt invested in, it evoked a strong emotional reaction from me and hey, that's what art is supposed to do. What more can I say?