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It's possible my expectations for this movie were a bit high given all the Oscar buzz and general comments from folks about it being their favorite movie of the year. I found it to be enjoyable enough, but probably not all that memorable. Basic summary, a father who has generally been too busy to deal with his family for the last X years is forced to be the primary parent when his wife is left in a coma after a boating accident. Matt doesn't know how to care for his daughters, he doesn't know how to deal with the acting out and... well, that plot element drops away. It mostly becomes about Matt's wife's affair and how the family comes together to deal with that. That seems like an odd place to go and didn't develop into anything interesting for me. I guess where I'm left is that this movie didn't stand out for me, but did for everyone else. I don't know what made an impression on them, maybe they have families or maybe their spouses cheated on them? Maybe it's just that I can't relate? But in a way, that's where I find fault. A really good movie should be able to put me in that place even if my life experience can't get me there on its own. The Descendants mostly failed to do that for me.

3/5