Greenberg is the little French movie with American accents, directed by Noah Baumbach, and starring Ben Stiller. CL Contributor Anthony Nicholas reviewed the movie when it came out, and now that it comes out on DVD, it's time to take another look.
In Nicholas's review, he pointed out how wonderful the performances of Stiller and especially Greta Gerwig. He was right in gushing, as the performances were truly incredible. Stiller truly nails the really screwed up titular character, and has plenty of really akward moments, and the most akward sex scene ever with the equally talented Gerwig.
The performances, however, are where the goodness stopped for me. While the movie was very querky, it was a character piece that focused on Greenberg for a period of time. It was quite slow, and if you aren't able to identify with Stiller's many social issues, and dilemas , then you are not going to like this movie. The comedy was more situational, and quite sparse for a movie that describes itself as a dark comedy.
The special features were equally disappointing for me. I was hoping for a look into the inspiration, and maybe how Stiller and Gerwig got their inspiration, but, instead, we get the movie's trailer, which I never understand why they do that, I mean, why sell the movie on the DVD of the same movie? Anyway, there is also a five minute featurette with a quick writer interview, along with a quick interview with why Ben Stiller wanted to do the movie.
Sadly, the special features were incredibly lacking. I would have loved a director commentary, or even an interview with Greta Gerwig, explaining her inspiration. I would have loved the actors interpretation of the movie, but sadly, with none of that, I can't recommend you even renting this movie.
So, overall, with very little special features, and an unidentifiable story for me, I would say, stay clear of this movie, unless you really want to see Ben Stiller act well for a change.
EDITORS NOTE: This appeared in the lovely pages of Creative Loafing. You can see it HERE.
No comments:
Post a Comment