Greenberg
2010
**½
Director: Noah Baumbach
Cast: Ben Stiller, Greta Gerwig, Rhys Ifans, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Merritt Wever, Chris Messina, Brie Larson
Roger Greenberg is a former musician who threw his career away in a moment of self-doubt. Now he's recovering from a breakdown in his brother's house in Los Angeles, and feels drawn to his assistant. This is a romantic comedy by a very loose definition. There are some darkly comic moments, but is there something romantic about a will they/won't they between a self-absorbed prick and a wide-eyed young woman who has no self-respect? Only in movie reality would these two people end up together. Baumbach's film deals with growing old and coming to terms with your disappointments, but the protagonist is so unpleasant that his self-discovery never seems important. Nevertheless, Stiller, Gerwig, and Ifans all give great performances. The soundtrack was written by James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem).
