The Reel Critic - 04/08/10

A writer and director definitely not known for creating escapist cinema, Noah Baumbach (“The Squid and the Whale,” “Margot at the Wedding”) presents his most recent low-affect production. High in quick dialogue and low in life-outlook, as all Baumbach films are, Greenberg succeeds in leaving two generations of viewers doubtful of their personal happiness.

The film opens on Florence, a 20-something personal assistant to a rich Los Angeles family. At first, it seems she has her life in order and will serve as a foil to the typical dysfunctional Baumbach character.

However, this is shortly proven incorrect after she engages in a regrettable one-night stand and is left searching for emotional connections. Enter Roger Greenberg, a 40-year-old who has decided to “do nothing for a while” by inhabiting his brother’s mansion and taking care of his dog.

Greenberg, played by Ben Stiller, in his “Bill Murray in ‘Lost in Translation’” attempt at a new career path, plays the character in an entirely unlikable fashion. Potentially a directorial decision, Greenberg is a character that spends the movie proclaiming his desire to do nothing and succeeds in doing just that. The only change we see is a small sense of regret about his past as a musician and not taking opportunities given to him, which eventually is rendered inconsequential by his refusal to change.

The highlight of the film is the acting performance of Greta Gerwig, who plays Florence. By far the most interesting character in the film, Gerwig takes over every scene she’s in with a combination of an indie-darling aloofness and a far more foreboding look on her face, as if she knows she is unable to prevent herself from making poor decisions. The emotional crux of the film is watching Greenberg constantly take Florence for granted and the tragedy in Florence’s instance to forgive him.

After watching Greenberg’s unconvincing emotional journey, it’s hard to believe that the film’s ending, Florence and Greenberg giving it another try, is going to have a happy resolution, though Baumbach leaves us without an answer in that regard.

The film’s other plot, Greenberg’s consistently frustrating friendship rekindling with old band mate Ivan (Rhys Ifans) often feels like filler, though the chemistry between Stiller and Ifans is impressive and entertaining. Often, this story seems like a tool to blatantly outline the conflict of the film, which then leaves its emotional resolution mostly unearned.

The film’s grainy indie aesthetic and original soundtrack by James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem) serves the plot well but doesn’t do anything particularly innovative or risky for a Baumbach film.

The film is at its best in small-scale, dialogue-driven scenes between Greenberg and Florence rather than, for example, the absurd party scene, which, while watching a coke-fueled Greenberg hassle drunk teenagers, begs the question: what is more unbearable than a sober Roger Greenberg?

Ultimately, though not always enjoyably, the film succeeds in creating compelling characters and situations, and it even manages to provide an interesting commentary on the outlook of an aging generation of hipsters and the over-romanticized concept of doing nothing.