Analyzing Alexander Payne's Film 'Nebraska'

Not everyone’s dreams come true. This is a sentiment not often echoed in the escapist nature of many films made today. Hardly anyone would willingly escape to an economically depressed and small Midwestern town full of crushed dreams and a lack of purpose. In his film Nebraska, director Alexander Payne gives viewers the option of being tourists in this world, and surprisingly, it is an enjoyable trip with an uplifting ending, even if the main character’s dream is not realized completely.
The movie begins with the elderly Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) getting in trouble for trying to walk to Lincoln, Nebraska, which is 900 miles from his home in Billings, Montana. When his son David (Will Forte) picks him up from the police station, we find out that