Release Date: March 13, 2012
Rating: R
Running Time: 02:42:28

From director Alexander Payne creator of the Oscar® winning Sideways comes one of the Best Pictures of the year, THE DESCENDANTS, featuring a stunning cast including Best Actor nominee George Clooney (Ides of March) and Shailene Woodley (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) in her Golden Globe nominated and Independent Spirit Award winning role. Take home this wonderfully warm and witty film and go behind the scenes of THE DESCENDANTS with all-new exclusive content on Blu-ray Disc Combo Pack and DVD March 13 from Fox Searchlight and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

Based on the best-selling novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings and set in Hawaii, THE DESCENDANTS is a sometimes humorous, sometimes tragic journey for Matt King (George Clooney) an indifferent husband and father of two girls, who is forced to re-examine his past and embrace his future when his wife suffers a boating accident off of Waikiki. The event leads to a rapprochement with his young daughters while Matt wrestles with a decision to sell the family’s land handed down from Hawaiian royalty and missionaries.

Nominated for five Academy Awards® and winner for Best Adapted Screenplay, THE DESCENDANTS is a must-have on Blu-ray and DVD. The release is packed with must-see deleted scenes, behind the scenes extras and exclusive featurettes to bring you even further into the story.

The Descendants is without a doubt one of the best films of 2011. The Descendants exceeded my wildest expectations touching so many different emotions, evoking tears, overflowing laughter, anger and so much more. This story is heartbreaking and hilarious all at the same time… something that is not easy to execute but they hit the nail on this one. The twists and turns this drama takes will definitely encourage you to read the novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings from which this film was adapted to get more of this craziness that ensues! As long as this film is, you’ll want more without hesitation.

Watching Matt (George Clooney) come to the realization of the reality happening around him, making his latest decision to sell the land of his descendants a much more difficult decision was actually much more entertaining than it sounds. This is not a drama about family fighting over land. While there is a hint of that at the very beginning and end of the film, this story is not about that. Infidelity has found its way into a much bigger hole than anyone could have imagined. Turning a story of infidelity on its head like this and involving not just an entire family but a people’s history and sacred land, that’s a story worth watching.

Matt’s reaction to his ailing wife’s affair, leading him to scope out the home wrecker with his oldest daughter brought some great laughs. Shailene Woodley shined brighter than I’ve ever seen her shine in this film and really gave us a character here to at first be very frustrated with but then come to love, root for, and rely on for comedic relief. Never knowing what to expect from this character made each and every scene with her a moment worth anticipating. And who would have guessed that her boyfriend was noting at all like Haley’s on Modern Family?

What beautiful characters have been crafted here! Who else would love to follow them forever? Every actor has their moment to shine and every character has their moment to be, Too often, the truth is glossed over but these characters are honest, brutally honest… sometimes uncomfortably honest. And that honesty translates so beautifully into all other aspects of the film. Once the wall comes tumbling down, it is down and what a wild journey it is moving forward. Director, Alexander Payne captures the heart of these characters, the setting, and everything in between perfectly. Everything about this film is truly brilliant. It’s not wonder this film was showered with award recognition. I can say with certainty that this is one film I can and will watch over and over again and never grow tired of.

Bonus Features:
Deleted Scenes – The two deleted scenes on the Blu-ray come with introductions by the director, Alexander Payne… but not video introductions. These are notes that you must read prior to the scene being shown. If you’re a slow reader, you do not need to keep the remote in your hand to press pause because you are given enough time to read the paragraph shown. As far as I can tell, there is no option to view the deleted scenes without the introductions but it is a nice touch and there are only two deleted scenes rather than say a dozen so the introductions don’t get tiring. Readers may be disappointed to find only two deleted scenes while those who haven’t read the book may be encouraged more to do so.

Everybody Loves George (7:27 minutes) – This feature is for all of you George Clooney lovers. What’s a bonus feature set on a George Clooney movie with a featurette dedicated to praising this professional, goofball, and all around joy to be around man?

Appearing in this Feature:
Cast Members, Nick Krause, Shailene Woodley, Judy Greer, Mary Birdsong, Rob Huebel, Matthew Lillard, Amara Miller
Co-Producer/Unit Production Manager, George Parra
Director of Photography, Phedon Papamichael
First AD, Richard Fox
Author, Kaui Hart Hemmings

Working with Alexander (13:34 minutes) – What’s marvelous about this piece is that while various members of the cast and crew do talk about what it is like to work with Payne, Payne himself takes the time to introduce his co-workers and give them credit for their work. Not often do we see that. Perhaps the most charming of this featurette is watching Payne make breakfast. You’ll see when you watch the feature.

Appearing in this Feature:
Producer/Director/Writer, Alexander Payne
Cast Members, Shailene Woodley, Beau Bridges, Mary Birdsong, Matthew Lillard, Rob Huebel, Amara Miller, Nick Krause, Judy Greer, Matt Corboy, Todd Bradley
Producers, Jim Burke, Jim Taylor
Author, Kaui Hart Hemmings
Director of Photography, Phedon Papamichael

The Real Descendants (12:06 minutes) – President of Kualoa Ranch, John Morgan gives us a history of the land, including how this land has impacted Hollywood. Patsy Sheehan, a descendant who’s great, great grandparents, Abner & Lucy Wilcox came to Hawaii in 1837 also has plenty to add but really this is just a peak into the history that I would love to dive into one day. This is definitely worth the watch but should be just the beginning of what you search for in your pursuit to learn more about Hawaii.

Hawaiian Style (16:47 minutes) – The title of this feature may be misleading. I was looking forward to a feature about fashion but instead was given a feature about the culture and incorporating that in everything from the set design to the language in the dialogue. There’s a lot to learn, love, and appreciate here. What a fun film this was to work on, clearly. The spirit of Hawaii is so strong in this feature. It’s so lovely. Must watch!

Appearing in this Feature:
Hawaiian priest, Kahu Kordell Kekoa
Producer/Director/Writer, Alexander Payne
Associate Producer/Second Unit Direcor, Tracy Boyd
Production Designer, Jane Stewart
Cast Members, Judy Greer, Robert Forster, Beau Bridges, Shailene Woodley, Nick Krause, Amara Miller, Paul Merino, Matt Corboy, Matthew Lillard, Chad Kaheowa’anuiponili’ihoapa’inohohupa
Producers, Jim Taylor, Jim Burke
Co-Producer/Unit Production Manager, George Parra
Director of Photography, Phedon Papamichael
Author, Kaui Hart Hemmings

Casting (8:11 minutes) – Finding out how the cast came together for this film was actually much more intriguing than you’d think. Amara Miller’s story in particular was pretty wild and hearing the message that director, Alexander Payne left to Rob Huebel was very cool. It’s rare for moments like that to be shared and it’s different to hear about something and have something tangible so that was a treat. Watch and enjoy!

Also Appearing in this Feature:
Producer/Director/Writer, Alexander Payne
Author, Kaui Hart Hemmings
Producer, Jim Burke
Cast Members, Matthew Lillard, Mary Birdsong, Patricia Hastie

Working with Water (10:58 minutes) – Ever wonder what it’s like to film in the ocean? Well, it’s no breeze. As mentioned in the feature, what the crew wants and what mother nature wants and does are two different things. This is a fascinating feature that’s really eye opening as so many don’t realize all that is involved in water/under water shoots. You’ll have an even greater appreciation for the water scenes after this.

Appearing in this Feature:
Stunt Coordinator, Brian L. Keulana
Hawaiin Water Patrol, Todd Bradley, Paul Merino, Sparky Kane, Kimo Miranda, Terry Ahue
Associate Producer/Second Unit Director, Tracy Boyd
Underwater Cinematographer, Don King
Assistant to Don King, Jai Mansson
Cast Member, Laird Hamilton, Amara Miller

Waiting for the Light (2:52 minutes) – The things you never think about…waiting for natural sunlight to complete a scene. While I don’t think we needed a featurette for this alone, it is a fun (though exhausting at the time) piece of film making.

A Conversation with George Clooney and Alexander Payne (11:58 minutes) – This conversation was especially entertaining for a few reasons. Just the other day, I had been conversing with someone about how many actors do not get enough credit for how smart they are, one example being their wide vocabulary. They learn new words everyday and for Clooney to bring up one word in particular that he’ll never forget, it was pretty entertaining to hear and see after having that conversation. Also, because this is a one on one with Clooney and Payne, the director rather than say a press conference, it’s so much more intimate and the questions have more depth. While a short piece, there’s plenty to take away from here.

*The World Parade – Hawaii (Silent Film)

*Music Videos:
“Will I Ever See You Again”
“Postcards from Paradise”
“Honolulu’s Whisper”

Own The Descendants on Blu-Ray and DVD today.