Lovely, thoroughly enjoyable movie with lots of nice words and thoughts exchanged, some to make you laugh, some pretty profound to make you ponder on. Who would've ever thought that a story about two dying men could be such fun. Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson) and Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman), so far complete strangers, with rather different economic and social backgrounds (billionaire hospital magnate and body shop mechanic), both terminally ill, thus inevitably at closing stages of their earthly lives, meet and, in order to try to experience things from their "bucket list" (a list of things to do before one "kicks the bucket", i.e. dies) before the final curtain falls, embark on nothing less than an amazing journey. Although age-wise much too "developed" for many youthful activities they engage themselves in, and despite their individual differences, however sufficiently open-minded and open-hearted, two protagonists, through their earnest performances and their great interaction easily draw us into their well believable story (with single fantastic twist at the end... (spoiler)... realization that rather than through eyes of the still surviving one, the story was told from the mind of his ensuing spirit), whether (constantly) putting smile on our face or tears to our eyes, ergo covering (well, for us viewers) one of listed items, "laugh till I cry".
...On a more personal note, eight years ago when I first saw this movie in a theatre, I was a solitary man, going fifty, thinking that I have already experienced things which could make my "bucket list" (climbed high mountains (Mont Blanc, Gross Glockner, Triglav, Durmitor, Fujiyama, Kilimanjaro... to name a few), visited Great Pyramids, well not Great Wall of China, but at least Great Wall of Ston, well not Taj Mahal, but instead many other magnificent temples (Angkor Wat in Cambodia, temple of Karnak in Egypt, temples of Nara, Japan... to mention a few), been on safaris in Tanzania and Rwanda...) to reference those matching items pursued in the movie. Now, after its second viewing, coincidentally on my wife's birthday, I'm almost sixty realizing that only by starting a family and having this cute little toddler of ours to chase and play with every day (and... quoting another listed item, in "kiss(ing) the most beautiful girl in the world", compete with her mother), I have pushed my life's wish list much closer to completion...
Finally, after a decade of his successes in 80-ies and beginning of 90-ies with movies that I have enjoyed watching very much ("This is Spinal Tap" (1984), "Stand by Me" (1986), "The Princess Bride" (1987), "When Harry Met Sally..." (1989), "Misery" (1990), "A Few Good Men" (1992)), "The Bucket List" marks Rob Reiner's successful comeback and it stands as his easily the-best-of-the-new-millennium directorial effort thus far.
...On a more personal note, eight years ago when I first saw this movie in a theatre, I was a solitary man, going fifty, thinking that I have already experienced things which could make my "bucket list" (climbed high mountains (Mont Blanc, Gross Glockner, Triglav, Durmitor, Fujiyama, Kilimanjaro... to name a few), visited Great Pyramids, well not Great Wall of China, but at least Great Wall of Ston, well not Taj Mahal, but instead many other magnificent temples (Angkor Wat in Cambodia, temple of Karnak in Egypt, temples of Nara, Japan... to mention a few), been on safaris in Tanzania and Rwanda...) to reference those matching items pursued in the movie. Now, after its second viewing, coincidentally on my wife's birthday, I'm almost sixty realizing that only by starting a family and having this cute little toddler of ours to chase and play with every day (and... quoting another listed item, in "kiss(ing) the most beautiful girl in the world", compete with her mother), I have pushed my life's wish list much closer to completion...
Finally, after a decade of his successes in 80-ies and beginning of 90-ies with movies that I have enjoyed watching very much ("This is Spinal Tap" (1984), "Stand by Me" (1986), "The Princess Bride" (1987), "When Harry Met Sally..." (1989), "Misery" (1990), "A Few Good Men" (1992)), "The Bucket List" marks Rob Reiner's successful comeback and it stands as his easily the-best-of-the-new-millennium directorial effort thus far.