The Descendants (2011)

What kind of watch this is

Alexander Payne’s 2011 drama-comedy runs 115 minutes and trades in the specific, stinging humor of a family whose foundation just cracked. George Clooney plays a man who must turn his grief into a legal and personal investigation, dragging his two daughters across the Hawaiian islands to settle an inconvenient truth. The film balances the weight of impending loss with the sharp, awkward comedy of young people forced to see their parent’s life in high definition. It is a movie that respects your intelligence enough to let the silence do the heavy lifting. The South Pacific turns out to be a lot less terrific than the postcards suggest.