Film Review: The Bucket List

Liverpool Daily Post

THE BUCKET LIST (12A, 97 mins)
Stars: Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, Sean Hayes, Beverly Todd, Rob Morrow
Directed by Rob Reiner

"I LOVE the smell of chemo in the morning . . . "

Terminal cancer is the unlikely catalyst for a comical journey of self-discovery for two old codgers.

Billionaire entrepreneur Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson) ends up sharing a room with car mechanic Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman), who faces the same gloomy prognosis.

After a fractious introduction, the two old-timers bond and decide to embrace Carter’s idea of a bucket-list: pipe dreams to achieve in the little time they have left.

Seeing as Edward is filthy rich, money really is no object and the world is their oyster.

The two men embark on a whirlwind round- the-world expedition. The Bucket List is sporadically amusing and inoffensive.

Nicholson and Freeman seem to be having fun.

The film’s budget evidently didn’t stretch to visiting most of the places on Edward and Carter’s death list, as the green screen work is almost laughable in places.

The tear-jerking finale leaves no hoary ol’ cliche unturned.

When Carter tells his companion "I’ve taken baths deeper than you", he might as well be commenting on the film itself.