Greenberg
Reviewed by
Pete Hammond
March 19, 2010
In the film, essentially the emotional journey of two fragile characters, we first meet Florence Marr (Gerwig), a wannabe singer who works as a personal assistant to the Greenberg family in their swell Hollywood Hills home. After the father, Phillip (Chris Messina), announces they're leaving on a lengthy trip overseas, Florence has little to do except occasionally look after the pet dog, Mahler, and check up on Phillip's troubled 40-something brother, Roger (Stiller), who is in L.A. to housesit. Roger, a failed musician, has apparently been working as a carpenter in New York and seems to have had some sort of nervous breakdown. His main activity is writing letters of complaint to various corporations and building a doghouse for Mahler that never appears anywhere near completion. His efforts to rekindle the past with bandmate Ivan (Rhys Ifans) and old girlfriend Beth (Jennifer Jason Leigh) are half-baked. When Mahler becomes ill, Roger and Florence find themselves linked by the dog's health crisis, and soon Florence begins to see Roger as something more than someone who has lost his way, while he sees her as perhaps a path to happiness. Complications arise, of course, as these two lost souls connect and disconnect, trying tentatively to find their way out of their dead-end existences. New Yorker Baumbach seems energized by the L.A. setting of "Greenberg," and indeed, the city is strikingly realized as a place where human connections can be a tenuous thing at best. The director uses key L.A. haunts to move his story along, as the town serves almost as a third key character. As with much of his writing, it takes effort for the audience to get emotionally involved with these people, but they do grow on you. Gerwig, a filmmaker in her own right, is an arresting presence on screen. She can seem invisible or fully engaged, depending on the moment. She doesn't appear to be acting ever, her sensibility more European than that of most contemporary American female actors. By underplaying all her scenes and keeping an air of mystery, she makes it easier to believe that Roger and Florence could ever find a single thing in common. Stiller throws all his comic instincts out the window and totally invests himself in the complexities of Roger, perfectly nailing the sad nature of a grown man adrift. The film belongs almost exclusively to the pair. Other than the dog, who is aces, the supporting cast makes little impact in this intimate, extraordinary movie experience that may affect you like no other. It's a must see. Genre: Drama. Story by: Noah Baumbach and Jennifer Jason Leigh. Written and directed by: Noah Baumbach. Starring: Ben Stiller, Greta Gerwig, Rhys Ifans, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Brie Larson, Juno Temple, Chris Messina. |
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Events Calendar
Industry Grosses
| Rank | Title | Gross |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | WICKED | $1,534,111 |
| 2. | THE LION KING | $1,445,999 |
| 3. | SPIDER-MAN TURN OFF THE DARK | $1,433,241 |
| 4. | THE BOOK OF MORMON | $1,425,488 |
| 5. | HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING | $1,319,824 |
| 6. | WAR HORSE | $960,191 |
| 7. | JERSEY BOYS | $915,982 |
| 8. | PORGY AND BESS | $878,884 |
| 9. | FOLLIES | $878,880 |
| 10. | THE MOUNTAINTOP | $693,128 |
Week ending Feb 06, 2012.
Credit: The Broadway League
| Rank | Title | Gross |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | CHRONICLE | $22,004,098 |
| 2. | WOMAN IN BLACK, THE | $20,874,072 |
| 3. | GREY, THE | $9,300,999 |
| 4. | BIG MIRACLE | $7,760,205 |
| 5. | UNDERWORLD AWAKENING | $5,500,744 |
| 6. | ONE FOR THE MONEY | $5,206,279 |
| 7. | RED TAILS | $4,735,595 |
| 8. | DESCENDANTS, THE | $4,552,943 |
| 9. | MAN ON A LEDGE | $4,351,036 |
| 10. | EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE | $3,802,367 |
Week ending Feb 06, 2012.
