The Descendants (2011)

A land baron tries to reconnect with his two daughters after his wife is seriously injured in a boating accident.

Director:

Alexander Payne

Writers:

Alexander Payne (screenplay), Nat Faxon (screenplay)

Stars:

George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Amara Miller

Won 1 Oscar. Another 65 wins & 146 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Clooney	...	Matt King
Shailene Woodley	...	Alexandra King
Amara Miller	...	Scottie King
Nick Krause	...	Sid
Patricia Hastie	...	Elizabeth King
Grace A. Cruz	...	Scottie's Teacher
Kim Gennaula	...	School Counselor
Karen Kuioka Hironaga	...	Barb Higgins
Carmen Kaichi	...	Lani Higgins
Kaui Hart Hemmings	...	Matt's Secretary Noe
Beau Bridges	...	Cousin Hugh
Matt Corboy	...	Cousin Ralph
Matt Esecson	...	Cousin Hal
Michael Ontkean	...	Cousin Milo
Stanton Johnston	...	Cousin Stan

Storyline

Matt King's family has lived in Hawaii for generations. His extended family - namely he and his many cousins - own 25,000 acres of undeveloped land on Kauai held in trust, which ends in seven years. The easiest thing for the family to do is sell the land before the seven years is up, which is all the talk in the state, as, to whom they sell the property could very well change the face of Kauai. Despite the vast wealth that comes with the land, Matt has decided to live solely on what he earns as a Honolulu lawyer. However, Matt has not had a perfect life living in Hawaiian paradise as many believe. He and his wife Elizabeth were having problems in their marriage. She recently got into a boating accident which has placed her in a coma. Their seventeen year old daughter Alex is in boarding school on the big island since they couldn't handle her rebellion, which was made all the worse by an argument of an unknown nature between mother and daughter during Alex's last visit home. And their ...

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Plot Keywords:

father daughter relationship | boating accident | hawaii | cheating wife | dying mother | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language including some sexual references

Did You Know?

Trivia

Matthew Lillard, Robert Forster and Michael Ontkean all appeared in Twin Peaks. With Lillard and Forster being in the 2017 series and Ontkean appearing in the original series. Forster was the first choice for Sheriff Harry Truman until Ontkean replaced him. Ironically, Forster ended up replacing him in the 2017 series as Frank Truman.

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Goofs

In Hawai'i, you must be five miles from shore before scattering ashes/cremains into the ocean. When the Kings are in their canoe, Waikiki is too close, they are no more than a half mile from land.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Matt King: My friends on the mainland think just because I live in Hawaii, I live in paradise. Like a permanent vacation. We're all just out here sipping Mai Tais, shaking our hips, and catching waves. Are they insane?

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Connections

Featured in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #2.17 (2011)

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Soundtracks

Hummingbird Heart
Written by Maureen Davis and Adam Daniel
Performed by The Flutterbies featuring Maureen Davis
Courtesy of Toaster Child Music

User Reviews

Enjoyed thoroughly

I loved Sideways. Same screenwriter and director. George Clooney isn't my favorite actor, but this is one of my favorite performances from him. Nice pacing, cinematography, and direction in general. I highly recommend this movie. It had humor, drama, and was full of heart.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 December 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Descendants

Filming Locations:

Lihue Airport - 3901 Mokulele Loop, Lihue, Kaua'i, Hawaii, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,190,096, 20 November 2011

Gross USA:

$82,584,160

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$177,243,185

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Searchlight Pictures, Ad Hominem Enterprises, Dune Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1