One of the pleasures of watching Alexander Payne's The Descendants is seeing Hawaii, which is rarely depicted in contemporary movies. And the state is more than the setting, it is almost a character, permeating the film in everything from the clothing to the music to the social interactions.
The film is also admirable because it disavows its audience, in the first few minutes, of the notion of paradise. It should be required viewing for editors of travel magazines.
