The Pitch: The Squid and the Whale, only
everyone's older.
I guess there's no escaping it. I'm a Noah Baumbach fan. I've tracked down half of his movies at this point and I'm certain to get to the rest eventually. The only one of his films I've outright disliked was The Squid and the Whale, and most of that was due to how successfully it left a bad taste in my mouth. It's nice that I liked The Meyerowitz Stories though, because I was afraid that my Baumbach enjoyment was all Greta Gerwig-based (Greenberg, Frances Ha, Mistress America). The Meyerowitz Stories is much more similar to The Squid and the Whale than the Gerwig films. It's also about a self-obsessed father with two sons (and a daughter, this time), who are pretty messed up because of him. I guess it was just less toxic this time, or maybe more self-aware of it.
Perhaps it's the superb cast, which ranks much higher than the already strong Squid and the Whale cast. Dustin Hoffman is transparently, insufferably conceited. But, he's Dustin Hoffman, so he makes it work. I love that his alcoholic wife is played by Emma Thompson for a number of reasons. First: she's Emma Thompson, and Emma Thompson makes everything better. Second, I like that Hoffman and Thompson keep getting paired together since Stranger Than Fiction. It makes me think other people have watched and appreciated that movie as much as I have. I'm impressed by how Ben Stiller has made a career out of playing two extremes. He's either in huge character mode (Zoolander, Heavyweights) or he's an awkward everyman. This is the latter type, and he's positively flustered throughout. Elizabeth Marvel impressed the hell out of me as the always forgotten sister who gave up fighting it long ago. It's fitting that I don't remember seeing Marvel in anything else despite her appearing in several movies I've seen. Her low energy blasts through several scenes in the film.
Adam Sandler is great, and I'm kind of tired of hearing people say that as a surprise. We all know he can act. Punch-Drunk Love. Funny People. Spanglish. Reign Over Me. We've been through this before. Even in some of his Happy Madison (era if not under than banner) productions like The Wedding Singer and Big Daddy display some of that ability. The man just likes to be a clown and hang out with his friends sometimes too. I may not like those movies lately, but it doesn't mean he lost the ability to be good. The same goes for Tyler Perry, actually, but that's a-whole-nother discussion. It's not even news that he's taking on more serious roles again. Check out his filmography since 2014. Men, Women & Children, The Cobbler, Sandy Wexler, The Meyerowitz Stories. All more or less serious movies. Sure, he's had Pixels, The Ridiculous 6, and The Do-Over in that time too, but this is his highest concentration of seriousness ever. Baumbach does an excellent job of using Sandler's rage for comedic and dramatic effect. I love the running gag of ending scenes with him right when his in the middle of saying (or yelling) something. His relationship with his daughter is also very sweet.
Baumbach is really great at low boil humor. That's the kind of humor that makes you laugh in exasperation while shaking your head. It's not that you laugh at a specific joke. It's like when someone is frustrating you, and at some point, you give up and start laughing at them because there's no point in getting angry. It's a very specific type of humor: one that he's very good at.
Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend
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