The Bucket List

• Jack Nicholson: Edward Cole
• Morgan Freeman: Carter Chambers
• Sean Hayes: Thomas
• Beverly Todd: Virginia Chambers
• Rob Morrow: Dr. Hollins
• Alfonso Freeman: Roger Chambers
• Rowena King: Angelica
• Annton Berry junior: Kai
• Verda Bridges: Shandra
• Destiny Brownridge: Maya
• Brian Copeland: Lee
• Ian Anthony Dale: Instructor
• Jennifer Defrancisco: Emily
• Angela Gardner: manager
• Noel Gugliemi: Mechanic

The Bucket List ( Original title: The Bucket List ) is a tragi-comedy from 2007, directed by Rob Reiner. The film stars Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.

Action

Doubting, amoral white clinic owner and billionaire Edward Cole and the highly educated black car mechanic Carter Chambers are both suffering from cancer. Cole was married four times and has a daughter. Chambers once wanted to be a history professor, but the financial circumstances due to the sudden pregnancy of his future wife forced him to change his career goals.

Both men are in the same room in a hospital, which belongs Cole. Both must endure various cancer treatments on can be ( surgery and chemotherapy), and make friends due to their fate despite their opposites on. Then they both learn that they have to live only six to twelve months.

Chambers begins to create a list of things he wants to do in his life before he releases the spoon ( the so-called " bucket list"). The idea comes from the time of his study of philosophy, when he got applied this task in a lecture as an exercise. But after recording a few points, leaving him the courage that it actually put into action, so that it crumples the list and throws on the floor. Cole finds Chambers' list, making a little fun of him, because he feels his points as to harmless and little material, but befriends principle with the idea. He starts his own items on the list and add convinced Chambers of implementing the list into action. Ultimately they put together a list ( " Bucket List " ) together, which contains a number of different points, including a parachute jump, drive a Shelby Mustang, the Pyramids and the Taj Mahal to see, go big game hunting, something "Majestic " do ( so is Mount Everest meant ), do a stranger something good, so much to laugh until you cry, the most beautiful girl in the world kiss etc.

Although it comes between Chambers and his wife to fight, because the would rather see him in the family circle or in the wider fight against cancer, Chambers goes with Cole on the trip. In Cole's private jet, the two fly with Coles assistants around the world and to "work" the individual points from the list. Each full point emphasize the two from the list.

During the trip, the two learn to know better. Chambers finds out that Cole has fallen out with his daughter. Cole told him about the abuse that has done this, the husband of his daughter. He also tells him about how he " took care " ( he alludes to hired thugs to ), to bring the husband to leave his daughter. This Cole has never forgiven the incident, which it clearly loaded.

Conversely learns about Cole Chambers, that this has never slept with a woman other than his wife and the love seems gone out to his wife. In both the desire to help the other with his problems grows. Cole sends Chambers in Hong Kong, a young black call girl to seduce him. But Chambers realizes that he still loves his wife, and cancels the trip. Chambers tried his hand at the end of the trip, Cole together with his daughter, whereupon both quarrel.

How different the two men are seen after their return: While Chambers with his entire family celebrating a big reunion party in the style of an American Thanksgiving celebration and leads a happy life with his family, Cole returns to his cold, sterile house, where no one waiting for him.

After the family dinner Chambers and his wife want to spend a night together to celebrate their rediscovered love, as Chambers collapses. In the hospital, it turns out that in his brain have formed more metastases. Cole visited him at the bedside and the two reconcile. Here, Cole reads the letter he had received from Virginia, Chambers' wife. Chambers asks him in this matter, complete the list alone. The letter also mentions the production of Kopi Luwak, coffee, Cole loves. Since he did not know that these are excreted by a civet beans, both have to laugh until they cry - and can thus emphasize another point from the list.

While Chambers is operated again, which he did not survive, met Cole Chambers' last wish that this had formulated in the letter: He should be reconciled with his daughter. His daughter takes him lovingly and he met his granddaughter, who he kisses; then he checked the point "the most beautiful girl in the world to kiss " from. In the end, both have found what in life is most important: love. In Chambers' funeral Cole holds a touching speech and mentioned that Chambers a few months ago was a complete stranger to him, and he emphasizes the point " a stranger do something good " from the list.

The film ends with the story that Cole died at 81 years: "The eyes closed, but open the heart. " Apparently Cole has thus overcome the cancer (or at least delayed ) by he found happiness in his life. Coles assistant Matthew, called by Cole only Tom or Thomas, then also satisfies Coles last wish and carries its ashes in a coffee can on the summit of the Himalayan Mountains, where even Chambers' ashes rest in a coffee can, as Carter Chambers his life instant coffee mochte.Nie change a successful principle as Carter so often said. It was the last wish of the two men to climb the summit of the Himalayas and " to experience something majestic " - due to the bad weather on their trip they can not experience itself. Finally, Matthew emphasizes on the list this last point and puts the list together with the ashes of Cole next to the box with the ashes of Chambers.

Background

• The original title of The Bucket List refers to the English phrase "to kick the bucket ", which colloquially kick the bucket, it means bite the dust. A bucket list here is a list on which the protagonists of the film list everything what they would still like to do before they die. The term bucket list was translated into the German dubbing with spoon list.
• Carter's son Roger Chambers is played in the film by Alfonso Freeman, the actual son of Morgan Freeman.
• In the film, there are allusions to the books " for a lifetime " ( Original title: The Time of Your Life) by William Saroyan and the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri.
• In the mentioned in the film Kopi Luwak, it is in fact eaten by civets and again excreted coffee beans.
• Premiere of the film was 16 December 2007 in Hollywood, theatrical release in selected cinemas in the United States 25 December 2007, the general began publication in the U.S. cinemas on 11 January 2008. The German theatrical release followed on 24 January 2008.
• With domestic box office receipts of 19.4 million dollars in its opening weekend, the film reached # 1 on the U.S. box office.

Reviews

Todd McCarthy called the film in the magazine Variety of 12 December 2007 as "a sitcom about mortality ." He could, thanks to the strength of the two main characters for the first hit of the director since the mid-1990s, although its " predominant emphasis on reason " would make it ideal rather to watch on TV screens ( "with the star power of Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman [ ... ] stands a good chance of becoming director Rob Reiner 's first hit since the mid - '90s, even though its prevailing sensibility wants Eventually make it look more at home on small screens " ).

Michael Rechtshaffen wrote in the magazine The Hollywood Reporter December 12, 2007, even Nicholson and Freeman were unable to this "boring" ( " dull " ) to revive film. The script will give the two Oscar winners too few opportunities. However, the participation of Nicholson and Freeman could appeal to an older audience.

But there are also positive opinions like this:

"The idea behind the film, it may vaguely " remember Knockin On Heavens Door ", is not a bad. To implement the theme of approaching death in a life-affirming comedy really promises an interesting film. [ ... ] Set both actors their roles very well represent the two work just only really in the interaction. But until that happens, it takes a little. "

Awards

John Mayer won with the written song for the film " Say " at the 2009 Grammy Awards, an award in the category " Best Male Vocal Performance - Pop ".