Being a fan of Cameron Crowe’s work (Vanilla Sky and Jerry Maguire), I was happy to oblige my wife’s choice of watching Aloha. We have been to Hawaii, (where the film is set and where it was filmed), and we like everyone in the talented cast, which includes leads Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone, and Rachel McAdams. The film is about a military contractor (Cooper) who has dating drama, both new and old, while working on a huge assignment that brings him to explore his past. I liked them discussing relationships in a mature fashion, debating couple hood with the influence of years passed, and lessons of heartache learned. Casting of Emma Stone drew some debate about casting white actors in roles not written as a white character, as her character is both Chinese and native Hawaiian. If it is important to the role, it should be respected, otherwise this kind of response should be expected. There is some authentic Hawaiian dancing in the film, which like the landscapes were given time to appreciate and pay respect to. Alec Baldwin steals scenes as a shouty military boss, John Krasinski and Bill Murray have memorable but brief roles, which is something that could be said of most of the cast due to the skill of writer/director Cameron Crowe. Crowe would also likely be a huge reason the film got the cast together that it did, filmmakers like him draw actors to work with them. Laughs come in random moments, a wide spectrum of composures are displayed by characters in the film, and matters of the heart seem to get worse before they can get better. I liked watching this for the cast, the scenery, and the laughs, so watch this when you want to go to Hawaii.

Aloha

IMDB

2015, PG, 1h 45m