An entertaining tear jerker of a story about two old men facing the end of two very different lives.
The Bucket List (2007)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:160
Fresh:67
Rotten:93
Average Rating:5.2/10
Consensus: Not even the earnest performances of the two leads can rescue The Bucket List from its schmaltzy script.
Theatrical Release:15-02-2008
Synopsis: Academy Award winners Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman star in the comedy drama "The Bucket List," directed by Rob Reiner, a touching, no-holds-barred adventure that shows it's never too late to... Academy Award winners Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman star in the comedy drama "The Bucket List," directed by Rob Reiner, a touching, no-holds-barred adventure that shows it's never too late to live life to its fullest. A long time ago, Carter Chambers' (Morgan Freeman) freshman year philosophy professor suggested that his students compose a "bucket list," a collection of all the things they wanted to do, see and experience in life before they kicked the bucket. But while Carter was still trying to define his private dreams and plans, reality intruded. Marriage, children, myriad responsibilities and, ultimately, a 46-year job as an auto mechanic gradually turned his concept of a bucket list into little more than a bittersweet memory of lost opportunities and a mental exercise he occasionally thought about to pass the time while working under the hood of a car. Meanwhile, corporate billionaire Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson) never saw a list without a bottom line. He was always too busy making money and building an empire to think about what his deeper needs might be beyond the next big acquisition or cup of gourmet coffee. Then life delivered an urgent and unexpected wake-up call to both of them. Carter and Edward found themselves sharing a hospital room with plenty of time to think about what might happen next--and about how much of that was in their hands. For all their apparent differences, they soon discovered they had two very important things in common: an unrealized need to come to terms with who they were and the choices they'd made, and a pressing desire to spend the time they had left doing everything they ever wanted to do. The list wasn't just a mental exercise anymore. It was an agenda. So, against doctor's orders and all good sense, these two virtual strangers check themselves out of the hospital and hit the road together for the adventure of a lifetime--from the Taj Mahal to the Serengeti, the finest restaurants to the seediest tattoo parlors, the cockpit of vintage race cars to the open door of a prop plane--with just a sheet of paper and their passion for life to guide them. Adding and crossing items off their list while taking in the grandeur and beauty of the world, they will grapple with the difficult questions and the even more difficult answers that plague all of us. And, without even realizing it, become true friends. With humor, insight, heart...and a fair amount of attitude. Sometimes you just need a deadline to get your life in gear. --© Warner Bros. [More]
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, Sean Hayes, Rob Morrow
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, Sean Hayes, Rob Morrow, Beverly Todd
Director: Rob Reiner
Director: Rob Reiner
Screenwriter: Justin Zackham
Producer: Alan Greisman, Rob Reiner, Craig Zadan, Neil Meron
Composer: Marc Shaiman
Studio: Warner Bros.
Reviews for The Bucket List
'The Bucket List' begins with a bleak, unsparing glimpse into the unraveling lives of two terminal-cancer patients and ends in unblushing sentimentality.
doesn't a by-the-numbers Rob Reiner buddy movie about dying just about say it all? This is for the hardcore Nicholson and Freeman fans who don't mind considering the mortality of their idols.
At one point Morgan Freeman's character shouts, 'This was supposed to be fun.' I couldn't agree more.
The film's trailers suggest the triteness you're in for, and Morgan Freeman's opening narration -- his usual wise-old-black-man spiel -- seconds it.
Although it's certainly not on par with his best work, The Bucket List is the best film Reiner has made in a long time.
'The Bucket List' pales in comparison to the talents of its stars.
When actors as great as Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman can't make dialogue sound natural, you know the script is a stinkeroo.
This rather special film is one about mortality and immortality and guarantees both laughter and tears. Of course, the combination of Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman is special in itself
Una comedia menor, sensible y muy disfrutable, que descansa sobre el histrionismo de dos grandes actores como Jack Nicholson y Morgan Freeman.
Is never as trite and cliché as it could be, instead it intends on being a genuine character study focusing on two unfulfilled men who tend to balance each other out...
Adam and Eve. Lennon and McCartney. The Captain and Tenille. Just a few duos that managed to make a little magic when they got together. And now, for you're viewing pleasure, may I add the celebrated team of Jack and Morgan.
An endearing film that will bring you to tears and have you cherishing every relationship and day you have.
Calling it Rob Reiner's best film in 12 years doesn't mean much. Remember "Alex & Emma"? Still, this is a modestly entertaining Hollywood fairytale of facing death head-on. Its occasionally leaden story gets light, familiar notes from two legends.
The Bucket List doesn't want to be about reality. Instead, it's about a fantasy version of illness and death, in which those things have no repercussions except to sanctify the dying.
While not a classic in its own right, The Bucket List displays two great actors in classic form, a sort of Planes, Trains and Automobiles for maturing audiences.
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