Greenberg Movie Review

By Ron Wilkinson Mar 21, 2010, 19:42 GMT

Roger Greenberg [Ben Stiller], single, fortyish and at a crossroads in his life, finds himself in Los Angeles, house-sitting for six weeks for his more successful/married-with-children brother.  In search of a place to restart his life, Greenberg tries to reconnect with old friends including his former bandmate Ivan [Rhys Ifans].  But old friends aren\'t necessarily still best friends, and Greenberg soon finds himself spending more and more time with his brother\'s personal ...more

Love is just a screech away as Ben Stiller bares the soul of a crazy man who seems to like it that way

After Noah Baumbach’s Oscar nominated indie bonanza “The Squid and the Whale” he needs something big as a follow up. We are eagerly anticipating what that might be, because it is not this pathetic whine-a-thon with whiner-in-chief Ben Stiller leading the charge. Greta Gerwig makes her mainstream debut co-starring alongside Stiller in this film. Although she lacks Stiller’s experience and his considerable comic chops, she is more interesting to watch than he is.

The problem is not one of Gerwig versus Stiller. It is Baumbach’s notably off-center screenplay that has double the mental illness of “Squid” and half the sensibility. One of the greatest examples of disfunctionality is Jack Nicholson’s performance in “Five Easy Pieces” in 1970 in which the outcast and mentality inform Bobby tries to make his way in a conforming world. Stiller’s character Roger Greenberg is not so different in this film. What makes the film tedious to watch is that the screenplay insists on flogging the audience over their heads with screaming mental retardation at every turn.

This is overacted, to some degree, in an attempt to make the unrealistic screenplay resonate. Unfortunately the screenplay grates more than it resonates. Repeating the same facial expressions and the same sequences of escalating anger does not advance the plot or our identification with the protagonist. Instead of being enthralled with the complexity and engrossing tragedy of bourgeoisie alienation the audience is kept on the edges of their seats like torture victims listening to chalk screech across a blackboard.

Gerwig plays Florence, a woman perpetually on the rebound from unsuccessful relationships at all levels of life. She has random sex and is unsuccessfully trying to stop having random sex. She also sings at open mike nights in a bar. Yes, if you see this film you will be forced to watch her sing an entire pathetic song at an open mike night. This is not film making. It is an attempt to fill 107 minutes with fluff while the audience is entreated to find some feeling for these performances.

Even so, Florence is  much easier to watch and to identify with than Roger. Gerwig’s measured performance allows us to take a breath and feel what we have in common with her. Most of us have a lot in common with Florence. We are trying to find a productive direction that allows us to contribute and feel self-actualized at the same time. Roger does not appear to be trying to find anything. He is just lashing out. Maybe that’s what some people do but it is not entertainment and it does not help us move beyond that to something better.

Rhys Ifans plays Roger’s good friend and former band mate Ivan. Ivan is there as a sounding board so that we ticket buyers get the full measure of Roger’s bile. As good a person as Ivan is he is usually on the receiving end of Roger’s temper tantrums. Neither of them seems to be able to argue five words in a row that make any sense. OK, maybe that’s the point.

Those who saw Ifans play Spike in “Notting Hill” and more recently, Gavin in “Pirate Radio,” have to admit this man has a future. His character in this film is a reformed alcoholic and so is nowhere near as much fun as the mysterious villain of near-mythological proportions he plays in “pirate.” Therefore, he is not near as entertaining but at least we want to hear what he has to say. After the first hour of Roger his appearance has the audience reaching for the earplugs or checking their text messages.

The sound track comes and goes with some fun tunes both old and new, but could, and should have been much livelier considering the high-energy context of the story. The cinematography is simply flat. It is clear, colorful, southern California TV photography with no mystery, grit or imagination. The entire film comes off as “Leave it to Beaver” with the Beav on a bad LSD trip.

Directed by: Noah Baumbach
Written by: Noah Baumbach (screenplay), Jennifer Jason Leigh and Noah Baumbach (story)

Starring: Ben Stiller and Greta Gerwig

Release: March 19, 2010
MPAA: Rated R for some strong sexuality, drug use, and language
Runtime: 107 minutes
Country: USA
Language: English
Color: Color