The Bucket List Review

Posted by Joseph Lee on 12.26.2007

To quote Jack Nicholson: "cutesy".



Starring:
Jack Nicholson as Edward Cole
Morgan Freeman as Carter Chambers

Story: Two elderly men both discover they have cancer. While at the hospital with one another they become friends. When they are each given less than a year to live they make a list of things to do before they die. Their list takes them around the world, living life to it's fullest.

Fun Trivia: Most wondered why Jack had his head shaved at the Academy Awards, and it turns out he was in the middle of making this movie.

I originally saw previews for this in the theatres and didn't know what to think. On one hand, this could be a charming little comedy about two old men on a road trip. But with a movie such as this there is a fine line between "charming" and "annoying". It also appeared to be one of those movies where all of the good things are given away in the trailer. I had mixed thoughts going into this but hoped that the first time pairing of Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson would not let me down.

For the most part, they didn't. That isn't to say there weren't any flaws, because there were a few glaring ones. First of all, the script turned this movie into a schmaltzy mess. There was so much sentimentality throughout one gets the feeling they are going to be sick. It never fails to drive home the message of "live life now because you may not get to later". This film just feels really cheesy at times. It's supposed to be a tearjerker, but it's the worst kind. It panders to it's audience and almost tells them how to react at each key scene.

The supporting cast isn't much help either. I can't begin to say how annoyed I was by the performance of Beverly Todd, who plays Carter's wife. It could be the script's fault as well, but she comes across as very selfish and it doesn't bother to give her any exposition to show why she feels this way. As far as the viewer knows, she'd rather see Morgan Freeman die in bed than live his life. Again, I blame the script partially for this because of the message it wants to hit the viewer over the head with. But Todd tends to overact so she is just as much to blame.

The biggest compliment I can give director Rob Reiner for this film is his main casting. Nicholson and Freeman carried this film on their respective backs. They tried hard to rise above the conventions of the script that were holding this movie back. The scenes in the hospital were especially well done as they sold the fact their characters were dying very well. When they acted like they were suffering, it appeared as though they were suffering. The discussions between the two about life and death were pleasing as well. It helps when the two have undeniable chemistry with each other. So much so I'd like to see them paired up again in the near future.

The actual road trip, while shorter than expected is still worth it. Edward and Carter really do live life to it's fullest. Sky diving, street racing, trips around the world, they do it all. I enjoyed that. There were also little things I liked such as Carter being in France and being the most excited that they show Jeopardy. The two stayed in character and had nuances to their roles that make the viewing experience a good one. I did laugh at a few parts and was getting drawn into the performances of Nicholson and Freeman towards the end.

The 411: The Bucket List is a movie that aspires to overcome the trappings of it's genre but fails to do so. Instead, it relies on it's two stars to carry the movie and fortunately it's a task that Nicholson and Freeman were ready to do. A pleasant, if disappointing film to finish out the year.

Final Score:  6.5   [ Average ]