You know what they say about road trip movies: the journey matters more than the destination. That's especially true when it comes to director Alexander Payne's sixth feature film, Nebraska. The main plot device in this film involves a road trip from Billings, MT to Lincoln, NE, and there's really only one possible outcome. But Payne's film is really about social commentary, how we view our lives when our most action-packed years are long behind us, as well as our desperation to get a piece of someone else's good fortune. Aided by a series of strong (some Oscar-worthy) performances and superb black-and-white cinematography, Nebraska is certain to delight anyone willing to sample its small-town charm.
The first shot of the movie depicts Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) walking along a highway when he's stopped by a police officer and detained. When his son, Dave (Will Forte), picks him up at the station, we learn that Woody intends to travel, come hell or high water, from his home in Billings, MT to Lincoln, NE in order to claim one million dollars which he believes he has won from a mailing sweepstakes. Much like Dave, we know it's all a scam, and Woody's wife, Kate (June Squibb) goes even further when she declares she's fed up with Woody's lazy ways and believes he belongs in a nursing home. Determining that Woody is dead-set on this quest and knowing that it gives him some measure of hope in his twilight years, Dave decides to take a few days off from his electronics retail job and accompany his old man on the trip. Along the way, circumstances force them to make a stop in Woody's hometown of Hawthorne, where news of his situation spreads among old friends and family members faster than a wildfire.
Nebraska is about reflection, whether that's Dave slowly beginning to understand what makes his father tick, or Woody, who seems to take the inevitability of dying with little more than a shrug. Two of the movie's best scenes bring this to the forefront. One occurs in a cemetery, where Kate lashes out with colorful commentary about Woody's late relatives, and another depicts Woody, Kate, Dave, and the latter's brother Ross (Bob Odenkirk) taking a tour of Woody's former childhood home. This topic may sound tailor-made for a Lifetime movie hoping to boost Kleenex sales, but Payne isn't interested in going that route. Instead, he makes his point with low-key humor and scenes of quiet introspection.
As tricky as it is to write and structure a film around a barely-coherent character like Woody without turning him into a caricature, it's equally as difficult to portray him with humanity. 77-year-old Bruce Dern accomplishes that and then some. Dern doesn't have a whole lot of dialogue per scene, and that means he must inhabit his character through mannerisms, gait, and tone. He delivers masterful work as a man who seems nonchalant about what others say and think about him but ultimately acts that way only to mask his true insecurities. Forte is superb as well; the once ubiquitous former SNL cast member has come a long way and proves he can handle weighty material. And then there's June Squibb, who delivers most of the flim's best lines with sour-tongued delight. But Kate has plenty of humanity as well beneath the cynical exterior. Oscar nominations for Dern and Squibb appear inevitable, and rightfully so.
A secondary theme in Nebraska involves the greed and pettiness of Woody's relatives as well as former business partner Ed Pegram (Stacy Keach). It isn't long before some of them come calling for a share of Woody's winnings, believing they're entitled to it because of favors from long ago. The idea will resonate with many people who have experienced such things in real life, but a few too many of the bit players in this movie are too cartoonish to be entirely believable. There's also that minor nagging question of why the long stopover in Hawthorne is even necessary at all. Woody and Dave could have easily made the trip from Billings to Lincoln without any drama whatsoever. But then there wouldn't be a movie, would there?
In spite of contrivances from a plot standpoint, Nebraska feels true to life when it concentrates on a small group of characters and their attempts to rebuild fractured relationships. The movie doesn't ascend to the heights of some of Payne's previous films like Sideways or The Descendants, but it's definitely a worthwhile experience and a pleasant change of pace.
Rating: *** (out of ****)
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