The Descendants turns 10: George Clooney’s social drama takes an incisive look at life and loss

Alexander Payne's The Descendants was a subtle masterclass in filmmaking. Based in Hawaii, Payne’s film had hardly anything to do with the vacation town that many drop by for a quick, refreshing time. A sedate voiceover by George Clooney, who plays the protagonist Matt King, reminds audiences at the get-go, that life, in Hawaii is as tedious and painful as any other morbid city. Payne’s focus is strictly to navigate through the ebb and flow of life and how it sweeps anybody off their feet in unexpected moments.

The feature opens with Matt’s crisis. A working husband and father of two, he is suddenly propelled into the epicentre of a disjoint family unit after wife Elizabeth (Patricia Hastie) hurtles into a coma following a freak accident with a speedboat. Always one for a conscientious work ethic, Matt’s uninvolved nature with his family proves to be a deterrent when (as he puts it) “the backup parent, the understudy” is left to handle his two daughters. Alexandra ‘Alex King (Shailene Woodley), is an angsty rebel teenager who had left a few things unresolved with her mother prior to the accident and Scottie King (a stunning Amara Miller) is a precocious adolescent whose unconventional ways of life and continuous curiosity befuddles Matt.

The charm of The Descendants lies in how quickly Payne chooses to shift the moods. His lens swerves hastily over his characters, delving deep into their inner souls seconds before they are jolted back into the humdrum of reality, compelled to move on with life like nothing happened. Several such intimate nuggets abound the narrative of the film, especially when it comes to Matt.

In the opening sequence, as Matt busily huddles over some paperwork in his wife’s hospital chamber, he mulls over his life decisions. He steadfastly pleads with Elizabeth to “return, come back” and he says he would “change” and become a family man. Clooney’s eyes show Matt’s desperation as he stares longingly at her comatose body, pinned to several beeping machines. 

But just as the viewer is about to get invested in his tribulations, Matt’s phone buzzes, extracting him from his vulnerable bubble and flinging him into the real world. Payne’s satirical perspective on human nature makes The Descendants an almost-comedy. But much like his characters, the film’s theme undergoes swift changes. Poignant moments of intimacy gradually give way to hilarious outcomes and certain instances of comic relief take seconds to turn piercingly painful and rueful.

Clooney’s casting as the epicentre of the film alongside a comparatively (then) unknown cast was a brilliant move. Payne’s keen treatment of the narrative is so foolproof, that the actor’s stardom never overpowers Matt’s placid personality. Despite holding a key position in his erudite, uber-rich family, Matt’s means of living are frugal and measured. He is the only trustee of the family’s fortunes and must make the ever-important decision whether or not to sell 25,000 pristine acres of Kauai beachfront property (a move that’ll make most of his cousins happy and him, significantly rich).

Hawaiian royalty on one side and haole missionaries on the other, Matt comes from a rich legacy and is a custodian of sacred land, a fact he is well aware of. Yet, his decision may not necessarily be moral, at least Payne makes it quite ambiguous in the beginning. Matt’s social status aside, Payne chooses to portray his protagonist in an almost unflattering, excruciatingly real light. Matt discovers of his wife’s betrayal, days after her death, and maybe even uncovers the reason behind Alex’s acute rebellion (Alex catches Elizabeth with “the man”). 

Despite knowing of him and understandably shaken by the news, Matt makes a run for his wife’s best friends’ residence, in flip-flops! That Payne chose to pepper this cathartic moment with a comic element of Matt’s defeated frame running across town to find answers, is clearly a commentary on the reality of life.

Script and performance aside, The Descendants chose to tell a story even though its visuals. Phedon Papamichael’s camera captures the grim sections of Hawaii with as much aplomb as the plush, enthralling 25,000 acres of beachfront property soon to give way to hotels, condos, and golf courses. The story’s seemingly staccato tone, is reflected in the abject disparity captured by the cinematography.

Payne’s Oscar win for Adapted Screenplay (the film was based on the 2007 novel of the same name by Kaui Hart Hemmings) is a testament to how well he portrayed a pan-cultural narrative and managed to depict it authentically.