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The Bucket List 2007: ReviewRob Reiner Directs Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman
Despite the great chemistry between Nicholson and Freeman, Rob Reiner's lastest flick about dying lands with a disappointing thud. Ouch!
If you could be told the exact time of your death, would you really want to know? According to an anonymous survey quoted in Rob Reiner’s new film, The Bucket List, 96 percent of people answer with a resounding no. Meathead Makes His MarkRob Reiner got his start as an actor playing the loveable “Meathead” alongside Carroll O’Connor in the 1970’s hit show, All in The Family. However, in the past few decades Reiner has made his mark as a prolific director and producer in such films as: When Harry Met Sally and The American President. This time around, he has struck a somber note in The Bucket List, starring two of Hollywood’s most iconic actors, Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. There is good chemistry between Freeman and Nicholson, but that doesn't make up for a shallow script (Justin Zackham) and cut-n-paste cinematography. “Just Two Beds to a Room”Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman) is a regular guy. For 40 years, he has worked as a mechanic who seems to know more trivia and useless information than Alex Trebek. Carter gets a call from his wife Virginia played by talented Beverly Todd. The news is bad: it’s cancer and it doesn’t look good. In a courtroom across town, Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson) is battling a medical board. Edward is rich, builds hospitals and is only interested in the bottom line. His hospitals have two beds to a room, no exceptions. Got it? No frills or bedside manner. Well, surely, this treatment is okay for the regular folk, but when Edward suddenly becomes ill in the courtroom, he enters the realm of regular Joe-Dom. In a twist of fate, Edward is rushed to the same hospital he owns and lands in Carter's room. However, what the film fails to answer is: if Edward owns the hospital, why can’t he get a private room? Carter has somewhat resigned himself to his ill condition. Cantankerous Edward, on the other hand, is fighting with everyone, including his droll assistant played by Sean Hayes of Will and Grace fame. Bad NewsThe two seem an unlikely pair. Edward is brash, arrogant and unlikable, and Carter is just a regular person with a loving circle of friends and family. The two men get the news they have been waiting for. Edward and Carter have less than a year to live, but have more in common than they previously thought. Since time is not on their side, Carter creates a “bucket list”. It’s basically the things the two guys want to do before, you know, they kick the… The ListHere’s a sample of Edward and Carter’s list:
The adventures on the list take Edward and Carter all over the world. The two travel to Egypt, India and the Himalayas, but the breathtaking locations just serve as a backdrop. There seems to be a disconnect between the adventures and the fact that these two men are actually dying. Rob Reiner is a class act director, but does a poor job examining the complexities of life and death in this film. Here are a few films in this genre that actually got it right: Terms of Endearment, Mask, One True Thing and Boys on The Side. Also, check out the theme song from John Mayer, very pretty. Enjoy them. Skip The Bucket List and save the $8 bucks for the DVD.
The copyright of the article The Bucket List 2007: Review in Film Dramas is owned by Sandra Campbell. Permission to republish The Bucket List 2007: Review in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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