Nebraska

And still they come. So many really good films this year already. Nebraska isn’t everyone’s taste, won’t blow so many people away like Gravity or 12 years a slave. But it is beautiful, considered and a pleasure to watch. Intelligent throughout. What other director would choose to make a contemporary film in black and white? It’s not pretending to be something from the 20s or 40s. It’s a detailed, honest portrait of an old guy falling apart, and his pointless journey with his son to claim a million dollars that he hasn’t really won. The photography is riveting; lots of flat, horizontal landscape, with fabulous music. You just sit, and look and listen. Not as edgy or busy as American Hustle, but a considered look at a few lives, powerfully presented. Very ordinary people, acted and directed with total conviction.