sbsieber
So bad. So very, very bad. The tale of a family is disarray; the mother an insipid up-and-coming author, the father a narcissistic, has-been writer, and their two pathetic and very disturbed sons. Painfully acted, despite a wonderful cast. Poorly written cringe-worthy scenes of shallow people behaving badly. There is a Woody Allenesque taint to this movie in the worst possible way. Painful. The only redeeming aspects are the street scenes of New York city neighbourhoods that are far beyond the economic reach of most people, which essentially amounts to nothing more than real estate porn. Everyone involved in this movie should be very ashamed. My advice to the writers, actors, director etc.: do not include this movie on your Curriculum Vitae.
SquigglyCrunch
The Squid and the Whale follows two parents as they separate and how that affects their entire family. Something that jumped out at me almost immediately was the writing. The father character in particular is shown to be a very real, well- realized character right off the bat. And the rest of the characters are pretty much written around him, and it all works perfectly. But what is good writing with bad actors? The leading cast here is fantastic. Each one plays off of each other well enough to feel like a real family but poorly enough that you feel that every conflict has depth and gravitas. Especially towards the end when the characters begin to come to realize certain things the movie manages to really tug on some emotional heart strings and really make the audience feel for the characters, even the hardest ones. The movie is directed with hand-held camera, giving it a found footage/documentary vibe. And as a result it feels much more realistic. Not to say that the conflict seemed fake, but the directing just added to it. Overall I loved The Squid and the Whale. The direction, acting, and writing are all fantastic. It's hard to watch, and yet it's so engaging. In the end I would definitely recommend seeing this movie.
framptonhollis
This emotional, yet surprisingly entertaining indie film is among the best of its kind. It has a very simple story, dealing with the affects a divorce has on the parents' children. It is told like a combination of a film by Wes Anderson, Todd Solondz, and a cinema verite documentarian (mainly because of the use of hand-held camera movement as well as the overall fly on the wall approach to cinema that this film uses).The result is kind of depressing...but it's a little too awkward and funny to ever become really tragic. It is a very healthy and well written mixture of both comedy and drama that will make you both laugh and think. The script is brilliant, filled with dark wit and stunning realism, but the characters and performers deserve equal praise. While the characters seem slightly unlikable and pretentious at times, they're never boring and always feel three dimensional and real-and much of this is due to not only the script but also the brilliant performances. Jeff Daniels is fantastic, as well as Laura Linney, and Jesse Eisenberg is also quite good despite having the overall least likable character in the film, and the young Owen Kline does surprisingly great.This dramedy is hilarious, sad, and unique-an absolute must for all true fans of film
Arconada
Although the movie shows excellent acting, it doesn't go anywhere. The Squid and the Whale is a display in the Natural History Museum. It shows a fight between a giant squid and a whale, and it seems to be used as a metaphor for the fight of two parents. The parents separate in the beginning of the movie. Some attempts are made to get together again, but when one shows willingness the other one rejects that, and vice-versa. In the end the sons have left their father as well. And that is the entire plot. So not much is going on this movie. However, the acting by almost all actors is very good, and it is a feast to see that. So all in all, I gave this movie a 7/10, but mainly for the acting.
AD
