Don't kick this 'Bucket'

If you were to die tomorrow, how would you want to spend the last day of your life?\nWhen Ed Cole (Jack Nicholson) finds himself dying of cancer in the same hospital he owns, the cynical money tycoon has only one option: He must befriend his roommate who is in the same boat, a man named Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman), who has spent life working hard to better it for others. Carter and Ed irritate each other at first, but their commonality of imminent early deaths soon forces them to grow a deep bond of hope. When Ed spies Carter making a "bucket list" -- all the things Carter has ever wanted to do before "kicking the bucket" -- he convinces them to go through with it together.\nThe duo travels around the world, checking off activities on the list. From skydiving and visiting Egypt to kissing the most beautiful girl in the world, Freeman and Nicholson portray with honesty the unique bond between them. In the face of death, we still get a taste of Nicholson's deep longing for more than just money and Freeman's need to repair the rift between his wife and him.\nFreeman and Nicholson deliver believable and honest characters, full of raw emotion once they let their guard down. By the end of "The Bucket List," you don't feel as though you've seen two people become friends in a movie; you feel like you know them as friends of your own.\nA mix of drama and fun, "The Bucket List" is uplifting but encourages viewers to think and question life. Best of all, veteran actors Freeman and Nicholson deliver the same caliber of acting we've come to expect in their Oscar-winning careers. Smart and funny, it's a sob story with hope from a unique friendship that inspires viewers both young and old to craft bucket lists of their own. The film doesn't attempt to dodge predictability and may not do anything drastically new, but it's a feel-good film viewers won't regret.\nThe film's writers do play the inspiration card in typical fashion, but also make one grand point most viewers will take heart in: You can travel all over the world, but sometimes the best things in life are waiting right at home.