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IFA Movie Review: Greenberg
By: Fil Garrison
Roger Greenberg (Ben Stiller) is an unlikable, narcissistic, whiny man who tried his hand at music years ago only to get cold feet just before his first big record deal and skip out to New York to become a carpenter. Eventually, he has a nervous breakdown and decides to head back to Los Angeles to stay at his successful, well balanced brother’s while the family is out of town in Thailand for six weeks.
This sets the stage for the film Greenberg, directed by Noah Baumbach – a movie about the difficulties and complexities of human relationships, especially with such flawed people. While in Los Angeles, Greenberg strikes up an awkward romance with Florence (Greta Gerwig), his brother’s personal assistant and tries to reconnect with his former band mates, many of whom have moved on with their lives to become successful, or even moderately happy.
Focusing on a flawed or even unlikeable character is something that’s been done for years in cinema: point-in-fact, some of our favorite characters have been downright villainous. But with Greenberg, we get a character that is so unlikable, so awkward and self-centered, that it’s hard for us to relate or even come close to caring about him or his life. In every one of his relationships, Greenberg himself is the problem; he never acknowledges his mistakes or flaws, and when he apologizes it’s a half apology that expects immediate forgiveness and utter surrender. Even as a villain, Greenberg is just not that likable.
This is a direct contrast to the rest of the cast, who are marvelously fleshed out, multi-dimensional characters who all seem to have a basic knowledge of how to act human and at least pretend to care about what other people think. Gerwig turns in the most heartwarming and sad portrayal of a Los Angeles girl trying to find work in a saturated market, struggling to make ends meet, and floating from meaningless relationship to meaningless relationship. While directionless, she knows where she wants to end up, she just has trouble getting there.
Unfortunately, such movies have a hard time establishing plot, as we’re essentially following the characters through a six week period in their lives without events being connected or relevant. Greenberg himself states that he’s not looking for any meaning or forward momentum in his life – he just wants to “do nothing for a while.” This makes for a hard sell when the most engaging plot in the movie is about how the family dog, Mahler, has an Autoimmune Disease.
Each scene of this film is extremely well written and realistic, credit must be given to Baumbach and Jennifer Jason Leigh (who co-wrote the film with her husband) for making every interaction an interesting exploration of the difficulty of striking up or maintaining the human connection. Even if you don’t connect or care about the main character, the ancillary people in his life are compelling and enjoyable to watch, and their interactions with him form the heart of the movie.
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