Directed by: Noah Baumbach
Written by: Noah BaumbachProduced by: Wes Anderson, Peter Newman, Charlie Corwin and Clara Markowicz.
Cast: Jeff Daniels, Laura Linney, Jesse Eisenberg, Owen Kline, William Baldwin, Anna Paquin and Halley Feiffer.
MPAA: Rated R for strong sexual content, graphic dialogue and language.
81 Minutes
For those who like quirky movies this is not an aquatic animation (though the Squid and the Whale sound like friends of Nemo,) but a raw, funny and heartfelt comedy-drama about the downfall of a family.
The movie is a personal portrayal by writer and director Noah Baumbach who is also known to have written the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, a title also suggesting his fascination for the deep blue, together with his friend Wes Anderson. Baumbach originally wanted Anderson to direct the Squid and the Whale, but Anderson convinced Baumbach to direct it himself as the script was inspired by Baumbach's own experience of his parent's divorce. The story takes place in the bohemian part of Brooklyn back in the 80's, a time when divorce initiated by women was on the increase and Baumbach's family was no exception to the rule.
Jeff Daniels plays the sanctimonious, once-famous writer, now teacher, Bernard Berkman who has difficulties accepting his wife Joan's (Laura Linney) success. From the first scene in the movie the tension of the Berkman family is all-embracing as we watch them play a edgy game of tennis followed by uncomfortable silence at the dinner table that only Dickens can break. It ends in divorce and joint custody, involving even the cat. Their two kids Walt (Jesse Eisenberg) and Frank (Owen Kline) have to learn the hard and honest way that there is no longer a 'our house,' but a 'your house, my house and your mother's house.' No secrets are left untold as the essentric family deals with their new situation - differently.
Joan starts a relationship with Frank's peace-loving tennis teacher Ivan (William Baldwin) , while Bernard has an affair with one of his students Lily (Anna Paquin). Frank, the youngest, drinks beer and spreads his semen at the library books at school and rebells against
his father by calling himself a philistine. While Walt, sides with his dad, tries to be everything like him and plagiarises a Pink Floyd song as he struggles to find his own identity.
The plot is intricate and the cast plays it brilliantly. The most
impressive of them all is the youngest, Owen Kline, who got the role thanks to a family friend of Baumbach's wife. But the seniors, Daniels and Linney, were the ones later rewarded with best actor and actress
nominations.
The movie was awarded for best original screenplay and dramatic direction at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and it deserves all the ovation that it can possibly get. It is a movie that genuinely explores the complexities of relationships, identities and how to find yourself when what you know is broken.
The Squid and the Whale shows that even the most heart-rending moments in life have humor.
The movie is a personal portrayal by writer and director Noah Baumbach who is also known to have written the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, a title also suggesting his fascination for the deep blue, together with his friend Wes Anderson. Baumbach originally wanted Anderson to direct the Squid and the Whale, but Anderson convinced Baumbach to direct it himself as the script was inspired by Baumbach's own experience of his parent's divorce. The story takes place in the bohemian part of Brooklyn back in the 80's, a time when divorce initiated by women was on the increase and Baumbach's family was no exception to the rule.
Jeff Daniels plays the sanctimonious, once-famous writer, now teacher, Bernard Berkman who has difficulties accepting his wife Joan's (Laura Linney) success. From the first scene in the movie the tension of the Berkman family is all-embracing as we watch them play a edgy game of tennis followed by uncomfortable silence at the dinner table that only Dickens can break. It ends in divorce and joint custody, involving even the cat. Their two kids Walt (Jesse Eisenberg) and Frank (Owen Kline) have to learn the hard and honest way that there is no longer a 'our house,' but a 'your house, my house and your mother's house.' No secrets are left untold as the essentric family deals with their new situation - differently.
Joan starts a relationship with Frank's peace-loving tennis teacher Ivan (William Baldwin) , while Bernard has an affair with one of his students Lily (Anna Paquin). Frank, the youngest, drinks beer and spreads his semen at the library books at school and rebells against
his father by calling himself a philistine. While Walt, sides with his dad, tries to be everything like him and plagiarises a Pink Floyd song as he struggles to find his own identity.
The plot is intricate and the cast plays it brilliantly. The most
impressive of them all is the youngest, Owen Kline, who got the role thanks to a family friend of Baumbach's wife. But the seniors, Daniels and Linney, were the ones later rewarded with best actor and actress
nominations.
The movie was awarded for best original screenplay and dramatic direction at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and it deserves all the ovation that it can possibly get. It is a movie that genuinely explores the complexities of relationships, identities and how to find yourself when what you know is broken.
The Squid and the Whale shows that even the most heart-rending moments in life have humor.
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