Greenberg

Greenberg
2010
Directed by: Noah Baumbach
Starring: Ben Stiller, Rhys Ifans

A movie. A movie about a man. A movie about a man. That's about it. This movie focuses on a man who housesits for his brother when the latter goes on vacation to Vietnam with his family. The man (Roger) played by Ben Stiller is an emotional rollercoaster of a man. He had recently been released from a mental facility. He housesits and begins forming a relationship with his brother's personal assistant (Florence). Throughout the course of the film Ben Stiller has mood swings and outbursts that could be the very reason he was in a mental facility in the first place.

At times the movie is agreeable and illuminating. I found myself entranced by some of the dialogue exchanges between Roger, Florence, and Roger's friend Ivan. Overall though, the movie seemed to fall flat. The story never seemed to gain a solid ground. I felt that the screenplay was all over the place, and, even though I love him, Ben Stiller is still Ben Stiller in this role and there's no way around it. When he talks all I think about is him milking a cat.

Ben Stiller is a comedic genius (with the exception of Tropic Thunder). But this movie role did not feel like it fit with Stiller's demeanor. Greta Gerwig, who plays Florence, has a certain mystique about her, but her manly voice and awkward look make her role seem to fail as well. They tried to present her in a positive light, but nothing positive came through.

I feel that since the movie is very independent it did not have the allure of anything. The draw of Ben Stiller is what brought me to the theater. Unfortunately, it didn't work.

Stars: *