Review of The Bucket List (2007) by Jeff F — 01 Jan 2011

It may be a somewhat formulaic tale. Fine. But that doesn't hinder the ability of Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman to pull you into this movie with their performances.

The setup (that two terminally ill men set out to accomplish a wish-list of things to do before they die) is merely a framework in which Nicholson and Freeman create two brilliant characters and a relationship that can't help warm the coldest of hearts. There's more going on here than actors reading lines from a page. And it's interesting to see legends such as these develop great chemistry rather than each try and steal the show from the other.

Now it's apparent (as shown above) that hordes of critics disagree with me. Well, I don't exactly know how to explain that. The film has it faults, but I couldn't, in good conscience, tell anyone to skip it. I know that many critics like to take easy shots at films that are obviously safely within the realm of Hollywood convention. However, when those films are raised up by the power of the performances, they warrant a more thoughtful consideration.