Alexander Payne is one of the last remaining great directors of script- and character-focused dramedies.
Series: Alexander Payne
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The Passion of Martin (1991)
I find voyeuristic pleasure peeking back at student films and low-budget debuts of well-regarded directors
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Citizen Ruth (1996)
“Abortion satire” is pretty much the opposite of my ideal pitch for a film.
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Election (1999)
Election often appears on lists of the greatest teen movies ever made, but I wonder whether Alexander Payne’s 1999 film can even be called a teen film.
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About Schmidt (2002)
Alexander Payne’s previous films, Election and Citizen Ruth, are biting satires that ruthlessly mocked their problematic characters.
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Sideways (2004)
Sideways offers a middle ground between Election and About Schmidt
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The Descendants (2011)
In the seven years between Sideways and The Descendants, Alexander Payne hit the directorial equivalent of writers block.
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Nebraska (2013)
If you can get past the boredom, Nebraska will sneak up on you.
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Downsizing (2017)
The narrative structure of Downsizing is baffling.
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The Holdovers (2023)
It would be reductive to say that The Holdovers works because Alexander Payne once again cast Paul Giamatti, the perfect vessel of his writing in Sideways.