The Descendants
2011 · 115 min · Director: Alexander Payne
Show plot summary (may contain spoilers)
Matt King's family has lived in Hawaii for generations. His extended family - namely he and his many cousins - own 25,000 acres of undeveloped land on Kauai held in trust, which ends in seven years. The easiest thing for the family to do is sell the land before the seven years is up, which is all the talk in the state, as, to whom they sell the property could very well change the face of Kauai. Despite the vast wealth that comes with the land, Matt has decided to live solely on what he earns as a Honolulu lawyer. However, Matt has not had a perfect life living in Hawaiian paradise as many believe. He and his wife Elizabeth were having problems in their marriage. She recently got into a boating accident which has placed her in a coma. Their seventeen year old daughter Alex is in boarding school on the big island since they couldn't handle her rebellion, which was made all the worse by an argument of an unknown nature between mother and daughter during Alex's last visit home. And their ten year old daughter Scottie is starting to act out, which Matt doesn't know if he can handle, potentially raising her on his own. Matt decides to bring Alex home upon news that Elizabeth is brain dead, and that she will be pulled off life support. But revelations about Elizabeth and Alex's argument, which is tied indirectly to the issue of the land sale, leads to some decisions on Matt's part about what is best for him in both mourning Elizabeth's death and what is the best thing to do about the land, the two decisions which may be incompatible.
Emotional fingerprint
The Descendants (2011) — Movie. Top emotional signals: Sadness 30%, Empathy 25%, Love 20%. Source: AI estimate. Shares describe emotional signal, not percentages of people. Your experience may differ. How we measure
- Sadness30%
- Empathy25%
- Love20%
- Satisfaction15%
- Hope10%
AI estimate · no viewer votes yet
How we measure
AI estimate
Share of emotional signal, not the percentage of people or a probability of enjoyment.
Each viewer contributes one response, split equally across their selected emotions. When available, an automated estimate supplies a prior that is blended with those responses. Counts include distinct viewers, not automated estimates or archived anonymous votes. Fewer than 3 viewers is an early estimate; more responses do not guarantee certainty.
Why it feels this way
The strongest emotional signals are Sadness, Empathy, Love. Genres: Comedy, Drama. AI estimate.
Is it worth watching?
Consider this title if you are looking for Sadness, Empathy and Love. Its IMDb rating of 7.3/10 suggests a generally positive audience reception. For these leading emotions, its Feel Score is 73/100.
How did it make you feel?
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Pick up to three · 0/3
Emotional journey
- Sadness
- Empathy
- Love
Not enough subtitle evidence
No dominant emotion
Dominant emotion: Sadness
Dominant emotion: Tension
Dominant emotion: Humor
Dominant emotion: Love
Dominant emotion
| % | Approximate minute | Dominant emotion | Overall intensity | Sadness | Empathy | Love |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.5 % | ≈ 3′ | Sadness | 48 % | 40 % | 42 % | 13 % |
| 7.5 % | ≈ 9′ | Sadness | 57 % | 53 % | 49 % | 14 % |
| 12.5 % | ≈ 14′ | Sadness | 64 % | 56 % | 53 % | 16 % |
| 17.5 % | ≈ 20′ | Tension | 64 % | 50 % | 50 % | 19 % |
| 22.5 % | ≈ 26′ | Sadness | 74 % | 63 % | 56 % | 19 % |
| 27.5 % | ≈ 32′ | Sadness | 78 % | 68 % | 58 % | 15 % |
| 32.5 % | ≈ 37′ | Sadness | 66 % | 46 % | 45 % | 11 % |
| 37.5 % | ≈ 43′ | Tension | 61 % | 35 % | 39 % | 10 % |
| 42.5 % | ≈ 49′ | Sadness | 66 % | 50 % | 48 % | 15 % |
| 47.5 % | ≈ 55′ | Sadness | 63 % | 55 % | 48 % | 19 % |
| 52.5 % | ≈ 60′ | Sadness | 49 % | 34 % | 34 % | 15 % |
| 57.5 % | ≈ 66′ | Humor | 43 % | 18 % | 29 % | 14 % |
| 62.5 % | ≈ 72′ | Tension | 44 % | 15 % | 28 % | 14 % |
| 67.5 % | ≈ 78′ | Tension | 56 % | 26 % | 31 % | 11 % |
| 72.5 % | ≈ 83′ | Tension | 74 % | 52 % | 49 % | 15 % |
| 77.5 % | ≈ 89′ | Sadness | 75 % | 58 % | 55 % | 24 % |
| 82.5 % | ≈ 95′ | Tension | 71 % | 48 % | 51 % | 25 % |
| 87.5 % | ≈ 101′ | Sadness | 80 % | 64 % | 64 % | 34 % |
| 92.5 % | ≈ 106′ | Sadness | 84 % | 76 % | 66 % | 56 % |
| 97.5 % | ≈ 112′ | Love | 77 % | 68 % | 52 % | 67 % |
Oedipus
Rags to riches: The emotional tone rises from negative to positive.
Riches to rags: The emotional tone falls from positive to negative.
Man in a hole: The tone falls, then recovers.
Icarus: The tone rises, then falls.
Cinderella: The tone rises, falls, then rises again.
Oedipus: The tone falls, rises, then falls again.
AI reading of the film’s English subtitles (dialogue and sound cues) — not viewer votes. How we measure ↗
Kadri — your film companion
AIAsk anything about The Descendants. From the film’s own dialogue and FeelDB data, at your spoiler level.
Afterward Reveal viewer responses · may contain spoilers
Viewer responses about feelings after the title ended, separate from feelings while watching. No AI estimates.
0 responses so far
Feeling details appear after at least 3 viewers respond, to protect privacy.
Cast
Elizabeth King
Scottie's Teacher
School Counselor
Barb Higgins
Lani Higgins
Matt's Secretary Noe
Cousin Hal
Cousin Stan
Cousin Six
Cousin Wink
Cousin Connie
Cousin Dave
Dr. Johnston
Details
- Directed by
- Alexander Payne
- Written by
- Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash, Nat Faxon
- Type
- Movies
- Released
- 2011
- Runtime
- 115 min
- Country
- United States
- Ratings
- Feels mostly
- Sadness
- Data updated
Where to watch
Rent
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