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If only there were more inventive moments overall. The Bucket List feels a little too episodic and rushed. I wish it took its time through a longer script, like The Ultimate Gift—another film showing people learning valuable lessons while facing death—because it probably would have proven more meaningful to stretch out the experiences. Instead, it all feels neat and convenient—Edward as financier with his seemingly limitless wealth, Carter as tour guide with his seemingly limitless knowledge. One moment we're in Africa, the next we're in India, the settings merely a stage backdrop for a conversation to play against. And since the scenes are so short, a travel budget would have been an unnecessary strain. Hence why it often looks like the actors are dialoguing in front of a green screen—Carter and Edward could just have easily visited the dunes of Tatooine as the pyramids of Egypt.

A conversation on a plane turns to God and eternal things

I still love the way this movie makes you ask the big questions. Carter and Edward share a terrific discussion about faith and the existence of God that would make a perfect springboard for the start of a sermon—though not the end. At the beginning of the movie, Carter lists the varying methods people measure their lives by, concluding that, "You measure yourself by the people that measure themselves by you." That, in conjunction with Christian beliefs, is the start of another deep conversation, for which this movie partly serves as a parable.

Live life while we can with no regrets … despite our differences, we all end up the same. We've heard it before, but this is just as much a movie about the healing we experience through fellowship and shared experience, bearing one another's burdens through all things. And the list isn't fulfilled exactly as you would expect. Which is why I can't help but wonder, when Edward and Carter ultimately "witness something majestic" on their list, does it refer to the picturesque location, or is it open to deeper interpretation? The Bucket List is not a "Christian movie," per se, but it's a movie that Christians can use and enjoy, and a charming one at that.

Talk About It

1. Carter believes that "you measure yourself by the people that measure themselves by you." Do you agree? How does this compare/contrast with what Christians believe about self-worth and a live well lived?
2. Who initiates the friendship, Edward or Carter? Does it simply develop because they share a room and experience? Or is there an act of kindness that sparks it? What do we learn about reaching out to others from the way these two form a friendship?
3. Is there a difference between Carter "giving up" on treatment and euthanasia? Shouldn't he fight to live no matter what the treatment? Or do you believe he fights to live in his own way?
4. Is Carter unfair to his wife and family with his travels, or is it that he's being fair to himself? Is it unreasonable to avoid being "smothered by pity and grief?" Could he have handled things better? How does he honor his marriage through all this?
5. Edward tells Carter that he doesn't believe in God or an afterlife: "We live, we die, and the wheels on the bus go round and round." Do you feel Carter responded appropriately? Should he have pressed Edward further at that moment? Why or why not?
6. How do both characters help each other by the film's end? What does Carter do for Edward and vice versa? How are they better for meeting each other? Give examples of how they bear one another's burdens.
7. If you were able to know how much time you have left in this life, would you want to know? Why or why not? What things would top your "bucket list?"

The Family Corner

The Bucket List is rated PG-13 for language, including "a sexual reference" that probably refers to one of the scenes where the two jokingly discuss their masculinity or throwing an orgy. Jack Nicholson's character hires a prostitute, but it's handled discreetly—a woman leaves a room buttoning her blouse. Both characters use profanity (including the Lord's name in vain), but Nicholson's character is particularly crass, dropping the movie's single f-bomb. The movie generally isn't too objectionable, though its mature themes make it more appropriate for adults than children.

Photos © Copyright Warner Bros.

© Russ Breimeier subject to licensing agreement with Christianity Today International. All rights reserved. Click for reprint information.

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