Synopsis: Alcoholic old man Woody (Bruce Dern) who also suffers from dementia thinks he's won a million in a marketing raffle and insists on travelling across country to claim his prize. Unable to persuade his father it is a scam his son David (Will Forte) decides to humour him and drive him to Nebraska.
Stan's thoughts: So glad I decided to see this because I nearly decided against it and it is such a brilliantly funny, warm and moving film.
You share the frustration David feels about his father's single-mindedness and cerebral impairment while loving him all the same. This is a father-son journey of rediscovery via Woody's past in the town he grew up in.
Simply and quietly shot in black and white and against a backdrop of recession hit small town America this is full of perfectly pitched performances, with characters delightful in their ordinariness. It is the antithesis of other Oscar contenders The Wolf of Wall Street and American Hustle.
Bruce Dern should win the Oscar he's been shortlisted for but he probably won't. If you can catch it, you should because it is perfectly lovely film and will leave you feeling warm and maybe a little sentimental.
Ratings
- Stan's: 86%
- IMDB: 81%
- Metascore: 86%
- Rotten Tomatoes: 91%
- RT audience rating: 88%
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