Preferably, to the chagrin of audiences, Chambers temporarily abandons his loving wife so he and Cole can selfishly begin their planetary geriatric quest. Director Rob Reiner lamentably tries to jump-start the proceedings with an incautiously executed skydiving episode that has Nicholson’s Cole dispensing prophetic airborne words of wisdom to his buddy, “Surrender to the void.” A concurring word of advice — do it. Potential enjoyment of the next 60-plus minutes should be enhanced immeasurably. Drag-racing Mustangs, an African Safari, the Egyptian Pyramids, the Great Wall of China, Hong Kong, the Taj Mahal, and Mount Everest all impotently follow suit.
At a merciful 97 minutes, the exotic location set pieces feel rushed, like Clark Griswold taking his family scarcely sightseeing at the Grand Canyon in the original Vacation (1983). Except that Chevy Chase really did look over the Colorado River. Bucket List takes cinematic shortcuts, instead using lavish —obviously computer generated— special effects to depict the spectacular sites. This reality serves to only reinforce the superficial nature of the thematic festivities. A check of the film's end credits to survey shooting locations, reveals production thanks only given to “THE CITY OF BEVERLY HILLS.” Breathtaking. So much for globetrotting enlightenment.
Like Ron Howard (Edtv, 1999, the lightweight deity-counterpart to The Truman Show), his baby-boomer directorial counterpart also reared in front of TV cameras, Rob Reiner has a breadth-long stranglehold on the would–be telegenic after-school-special meaning of life. However, he doesn't have the auteur’s talent for wringing in-depth, meaningful interpretation from its challenges and opportunities. The director has never been known for his heavy-hitting. Still, Reiner hasn’t made a decent movie for 13 years, The American President (1995) being his last respectable effort. The only observation more cogent than the speciousness of this latest outing is the state of his directorial career, which is rapidly repelling on the downside of Earth's highest mountain. The Bucket List may well be Reiner's nail in the coffin.
Article comments