Nebraska

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Plot

An aging, booze-addled father makes the trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son in order to claim a million dollar Mega Sweepstakes Marketing prize.

Release Year: 2013

Rating: 7.9/10 (719 voted)

Director: Alexander Payne

Storyline

“NEBRASKA” is a father and son road trip, from Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska that gets waylaid at a small town in central Nebraska, where the father grew up and has scores to settle. Told with deadpan humor and a unique visual style, it's ultimately the story of a son trying to penetrate his impenetrable father.

Release Date:

Filming Locations: Plainview, Nebraska, USA

Box Office Details

Budget: $13,000,000

(estimated)

Technical Specs

Runtime:
115 min

Did You Know?

Trivia:

The movie begins and ends with the 50s and 60s Paramount logo, saying “A Paramount Release”. See more »

User Review

Author:

Rating: 8/10


I saw the movie at the Helsinki International Film Festival. It tells a
story about an old man who is certain that he has won a million dollars
and wants to get to Nebraska to collect it. His family is sure that it
is a hoax but his son chooses to drive him there so that the thing
wouldn't bother his dad anymore.

Everything about the movie is very low key and the pacing is quite
slow. This comes from the choice of shooting it in black and white,
style of acting, and the locations and events depicted in the film. For
long periods, I found it a little hard to get immersed into the events
on the screen and empathize with the characters. I kept thinking that
the movie repeats what I did not like about Alexander Payne's earlier
work About Schmidt. But then somehow the movie started to grow on me. I
still feel there is almost weird resemblance to the road trip and
family reunion Jack Nicholson's character goes through in About Schmidt
but Nebraska has merits of its own. For one, the characters are quite
well written. Even the supporting roles provide witty observations of
different ways we might react to other person's fortune. Also, the
acting is very good throughout the film. The main characters' lives
have become unsatisfying and they are trying to deal with it in
different ways. Even though it is a little frustrating to watch people
who struggle to find anything meaningful to do or say, the script and
the actors are able to draw a very accurate picture of everyday life as
it sometimes can be. Here and there, they are able to provide a few
laughs and even some satisfaction when the characters are developing,
albeit slowly.

Overall, I'd end up recommending the film if you have enjoyed Alexander
Payne's previous work.