George Clooney is one of those actors I’ll watch in just about anything, as he always manages to make his performances solid, even if the material he’s working with isn’t perfect. Then there’s Alexander Payne, who in my mind is a director that consistently produces excellence. Whether it’s ELECTION, ABOUT SCHMIDT or SIDEWAYS, or even the HBO series HUNG (starring our buddy Thomas Jane), Payne knows how to make great “slice of life” entertainment. Put him together with Clooney, and you may really have something special. Their project THE DESCENDANTS got a little sneak preview today on the “Who is he” website, which shows a brief but effectively interesting clip of George running around Hawaii, and asking an inevitable question. You can check it out below until YouTube takes it down, or just click on this link. The movie co-stars Judy Greer, Matthew Lilliard, Beau Bridges, Robert Forster, Shailene Woodley, Michael Ontkean, Ron Huebel, Mary Birdsong, and more. It’s been 7 years since SIDEWAYS, so getting Payne back behind the camera for a big screen flick could be fun… but I wonder if Clooney will drink any merlot?
From Alexander Payne, the creator of the Oscar-winning SIDEWAYS, set in Hawaii, THE DESCENDANTS is a sometimes humorous, sometimes tragic journey for Matt King (George Clooney) an indifferent husband and father of two girls, who is forced to re-examine his past and embrace his future when his wife suffers a boating accident off of Waikiki. The event leads to a rapprochement with his young daughters while Matt wrestles with a decision to sell the family’s land handed down from Hawaiian royalty and missionaries.
THE DESCENDANTS opens December 16, 2011
Source: TheFilmStage