Movie Review: The Confirmation
After "Tammy," "Grandma" and "Nebraska" (to name just a few), the cross-generational road trip has pretty much run its course. But, this hasn't stopped Bob Nelson from trying to map an alternative route with "The Confirmation," his tread-worn tale about a father sliding behind the wheel with his estranged son for a quixotic adventure that magically shortens the long road between them.
It plays like "Nebraska 2.0," which is understandable since Nelson penned both scripts. Nelson has the misfortune of not having Alexander Payne around to help him navigate the trickier stretches. Nelson's film, his first as a director, also could use a healthy dose of Payne's sly wit and absurdist humor. Even if he did have Payne behind him, the question remains: Why repeat yourself?
The result is an acute case of no Payne, no gain. If anything, Nelson drifts backward in his quest to find purity and truth in the father-son genre. In their lieu are a series of clunky contrivances and episodic adventures that never come close to gelling. You also desperately miss Bruce Dern, whose work as the drunken louse of a dad in "Nebraska" runs circles around the drunken louse of a dad Clive Owen plays here. I can't remember Owen being so vanilla. I'm not even sure his lackluster Walt has a pulse, but Nelson makes it all too clear that the deadbeat dad has problems. In addition to being a recovering alcoholic, he's also broke, jobless and in need of new wheels. No wonder his ex (Maria Bello in what amounts to a cameo) is nervous about letting their 8-year-old son, Anthony (Jaeden Lieberher from the eerily similar "St. Vincent"), spend the weekend with him.
It's quite a weekend too; with bizarre incidents and even more bizarre characters (including weirdos played by Patton Oswalt and Tim Blake Nelson) regularly crossing their path, as they spend the 48 hours combing the town for a toolbox stolen from Walt's truck. What they should have sought instead is a rewrite or two to inject a semblance of genuineness in the characters and situations.
No, we're not in "Nebraska" anymore. We're really not anywhere in a story going nowhere fresh or relevant. It's not a complete waste of time. Lieberher is actually charming, and Nelson wisely avoids letting any sap trickle in. Though, what "The Confirmation" really needs is a road less traveled.
Al Alexander writes movie reviews for More Content Now.
The Confirmation
Cast includes Clive Owen, Jaeden Lieberher, Maria Bello, Matthew Modine, Tim Blake Nelson and Patton Oswalt.
(PG-13 for some mature thematic elements.)
Grade: B-