The story revolves around Carter’s writing of a "bucket list," or things to do before he "kicks the bucket", especially after hearing he has less than a year to live. But a frustrated Carter wads it up and tosses it on the floor which Edward finds the next morning. He urges Carter to do everything on the list (suggesting he add things like skydiving) and offers to finance the trip. Carter agrees, despite the protests of his wife, Virginia.
And so the pair begins an around-the-world vacation, go skydiving, drive a Shelby Mustang, fly over the North Pole, eat dinner at Chevre d'Or in France, visit and praise the beauty and history of Taj Mahal, India, ride motorcycles on the Great Wall of China, and attend a lion safari in Africa. Atop the Great Pyramid, looking out over the pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure, they confide about faith and family, revealing that Carter has long been feeling less in love with his wife and that Edward is deeply hurt by his estrangement from his only daughter, who disowned him after he drove away her abusive husband.
In Hong Kong, Edward hires a prostitute (Rowena King) for Carter, who has never had sex with any woman but his wife. Carter declines and asks to return home, and reciprocates by trying to reunite Edward with his daughter. Edward angrily storms off. Carter returns home to his wife, children, and grandchildren. But their family reunion is short-lived. In the preparation for a romantic interlude, Carter suffers a seizure and is rushed to the hospital. The cancer has spread to his brain. Edward, who is now in remission, visits him and they share a few moments, where Carter reveals to great amusement the disgusting origin of the "world's most rare coffee" (Kopi Luwak), over which Edward obsesses and Carter has refused to drink. Carter crosses off "laugh till I cry" from his bucket list and insists Edward finish the list without him. Carter goes into surgery but the procedure is unsuccessful. He dies on the operating table.
Edward delivers a eulogy at the funeral, explaining that he and Carter had been complete strangers, but the last three months of Carter's life were the best three months of his (Edward's). He crosses off "help a complete stranger for a common good" from the list. We see Edward finally attempt to reconcile with his daughter. She not only accepts him back into her life but also introduces him to the granddaughter he never knew. After greeting the little girl with a kiss on the cheek, Edward crosses "kiss the most beautiful girl in the world" off the list. In the epilogue, it is revealed that Edward lived until the age of 81, and his ashes are brought to the top of the Himalayas. It turns out to be Matthew who does this, and as he places Edward's ashes alongside a can containing Carter's, he crosses off the last item on the Bucket List ("witness something truly majestic") and places it beside them. In the final lines of the movie, Carter explains “I’m pretty sure he {Edward} was happy with his final resting place. Because he was buried on the mountain, and that was against the law."
This is one of the few good movies that I have watched this year, I know, I know, ‘The Bucket List’ had been around since 2007 but I never got around to watching the movie until now and I am just quite glad that I did. Let’s start with the film’s cast - Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman - they are quite considerably two of the best actors in Hollywood today. Jack Nicholson is just funny, no matter what he says or does; he has many funny moments here while Morgan Freeman is such a great actor. Jack Nicholson's performance is excellent as his character undergoes a change of heart due to Carter's friendship. Morgan Freeman can make me laugh and cry from moment to moment. These two actors work so well together – the chemistry between these veterans is pleasantly refreshing, and because of it, The Bucket List is one of the most entertaining films I have watched.
The story is predictable, but still quite enjoyable. It is a great movie about friendship - how two men become great friends in a short time and help each other out throughout the time they are together. The story is not boring, with the emotional parts done just right, and the conversations conducted between the two are never dull - meaningful, affecting and downright funny, the script is amazingly well paced and flows quite naturally.
The film emphasizes the message that the journey is the important thing, not the destination. It is one of the best feel good movies that I have seen and conveys the point that life should be led to the fullest because not everyone is given the chance like Edward and Carter to do the things they want to do before they ‘kicked the bucket’.
In due time, I guess I too want to do my own version of a ‘Bucket List’ - not because I’m going to die soon but because I feel like I am getting old too soon - and I feel that there are just so many things I want to do while both my mind and body are still capable of doing it. Maybe in a few more days or weeks maybe I’ll just come up with my own list!
[phot grabbed from IMDB]
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