The Bucket List (2007)
Average Rating: 5.1/10
Reviews Counted: 168
Fresh: 68 | Rotten: 100
Not even the earnest performances of the two leads can rescue The Bucket List from its schmaltzy script.
Average Rating: 4.3/10
Critic Reviews: 41
Fresh: 9 | Rotten: 32
Not even the earnest performances of the two leads can rescue The Bucket List from its schmaltzy script.
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Average Rating: 3.8/5
User Ratings: 242,254
Movie Info
Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman star as two terminally ill cancer patients who decide to break out of the hospital and live their last days to the fullest in director Rob Reiner's seriocomic road movie. Edward Cole (Nicholson) is a corporate billionaire who is currently sharing a hospital room with blue-collar mechanic Carter Chambers (Freeman). Though initially the pair seems to have nothing in common, conversation gradually reveals that both men have a long list of goals they wish to
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Cast
-
Jack Nicholson
Edward Cole -
Morgan Freeman
Carter Chambers -
Sean Hayes
Thomas -
Beverly Todd
Virginia Chambers -
Alfonso Freeman
Roger -
Rowena King
Angelica -
Rob Morrow
Dr. Hollins -
Annton Berry Jr.
Kai -
Verda Bridges
Chandra -
Destiny Brownridge
Maya -
Brian Copeland
Lee -
Ian Anthony Dale
Instructor -
Jennifer DeFrancisco
Emily -
Angela Gardner
Female Administrator -
Noel Guglielmi
Mechanic -
Jonathan Hernandez
Manny -
Hugh B. Holub
County Health Director -
Andrea J. Johnson
Elizabeth -
Dawnn Lewis
Flight Attendant -
Jordan Lund
Tattoo Artist -
Richard McGonagle
Board Chairman -
Jonathan Mangum
Richard -
Karen Maruyama
Nurse Shing -
Amber Mead
Attractive Woman #1 -
Nikki Novak
Attractive Woman #2 -
John O'Brien
Executive #1 -
Serena Reeder
Rachel -
-
Taylor Ann Thompson
Edward's Granddaughter -
Alex Trebek
Alex Trebek -
Roy Vongtama
Doctor #1
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All Critics (176) | Top Critics (44) | Fresh (68) | Rotten (100) | DVD (19)
You get the performances you expect from these two great stars, which lift this story mercifully but marginally above its meager content.
Top CriticThe Bucket List's craft is as impeccable as moviemaking technique and computer tricks can be. But boiled into a formula that is sometimes cloying and sweet, the movie is nonetheless a lazy low-grade product.
The movie is caught in the crossfire of its two missions -- to celebrate the universal things that "really matter" in life (friendship, family) and to celebrate what it means to live like Jack Nicholson.
Cheap and flimsy.
Not every film about death needs a bald Swede and a game of chess: Sometimes, the sky-diving's enough.
By the end of The Bucket List, silliness has been replaced by pretension, and while there may not be a dry eye in the theater, many of those tears will be shed in embarrassment for giving in to such hooey.
Meehl's gentle handling of her subject and her unobstrusive, observational camera work make this a delightful and touching experience.
Whilst this remains reasonably captivating for its first hour, it kinda runs out of steam after that...
A modestly uplifting, and at-times poignant, buddy comedy that manages to make the most of the worst of situations.
...contrived and forced, almost begging the audience to pull out the hankie.
An endearing film that will bring you to tears and have you cherishing every relationship and day you have.
...a hopelessly uneven endeavor that's ultimately felled by a lamentable emphasis on heavy-handed bursts of schmaltziness.
This movie has the same level of false, mediocre level of entertainment as the movie WILD HOGS. If you liked that one, then you might like this. But I despise both.
...sentimental, simplistic, and almost shamefully manipulative, yet I found it absolutely charming.
No Grumpy Old Men these two, as Nicholson's over-the hill sex machine billionaire with his serial quickies on demand, and Freeman's egghead underachiever spar with the Grim Reaper. Two Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest.
For those who want to Believe, those who want to be cuddled by the fake laughter through tears emotions that only an expertly made piece of Hollywood toffee like this can provide - if only for the moment - get out your hankies.
... plays like Ingmar Bergman's Wild Strawberries, reimagined as an uninspired sitcom and travelogue.
An entertaining tear jerker of a story about two old men facing the end of two very different lives.
'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.
Just die, already!
'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.
Audience Reviews for The Bucket List
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
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- Carter Chambers: I hate your rotten guts!
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- Edward Cole: Somewhere, some lucky guy's having a heart attack.
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- Dr. Hollins: Humour is always a good sign.
- Edward Cole: Kiss my ass.
- Dr. Hollins: Apparently, so is surliness.
-
- Edward Cole: Why thank you Kyle, I never even thought of that!
-
- Edward Cole: Just do it on how you do it for your family.
- Thomas: So...would that mean giving all the money to my assistant?
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- Edward Cole: We live, we die, and the wheels on the bus go round and round.
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Movie: ID: 770677066 Title: The Bucket List Release Date: 2007-12-25 00:00:00.0 MPAA: 3 Status: 1
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Foreign Titles
- Das Beste kommt zum Schluss (DE)
- Antes de partir (ES)
This movie is much like one of those good old buddy comedies they made so frequently during the 90's, although with a lot more heart, soul and dignity. Because not only is it very enjoyable, but it also has a lot to teach about life and what makes it worth living. With that said, I wasn't surprised at all to see it was directed by another great legend; namely Rob Reiner, who in the past has gifted us with such memorable films as "When Harry met Sally", "Stand by Me", "Misery" and "A Few Good Men". And as for "The Bucket List", well, I'm happy to say it's another brilliant addition to Mr. Reiner's long and respectable career.