Greenberg
Noah Baumbach
Scott Rudin Productions
3.5/5 stars
There comes a point in the careers of many prolific comedy actors – Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler, for instance – where they branch off from their loony mainstream comedies to riskier dramatic material.
The latest actor to make this trip is Ben Stiller.
The Meet the Parentsstar portrays an unstable narcissist in Greenberg, an offbeat and acerbically funny romance from writer/director Noah Baumbach.
Stiller is Roger Greenberg, a mentally unstable carpenter who house-sits at his wealthy brother’s estate in the lavish Hollywood Hills.
Greenberg has been treated at a New York mental institution (for some unexplained circumstance).
Besides hanging out with an old British pal Ivan (Rhys Ifans) and writing off-handed complaints to stuffy corporations, he’s also falling for a sunny young lady named Florence (Greta Gerwig).
Florence is the busy caretaker for the Greenberg family, and despite her blossoming career as a musician, she’s a lost soul. She may be his foil, but the two quickly fall in love.
But, don’t be fooled by that seemingly harmless description. Greenberg is a dismal, sour, razor-sharp romantic comedy.
It’s not for everyone — the depressed characters and the bruised nature of the romance might be too bitter for some. But, the film soars due to the excellent, magnetic performances from Stiller and Gerwig.
Stiller abandons his loose, colourful persona, and demonstrates great focus as the title character.
Greenberg is a kind of person you’d make an effort of avoiding at a party, due to his vile, obnoxious nature. Regardless, Stiller offers unusual pathos to the off-kilter protagonist. But Gerwig is even better. An actress of little notoriety outside the independent-film circuit, she offers an irresistible performance as the charming, dignified Florence.
Her acting feels effortless, as if there’s no technique whatsoever. It’s a hypnotic feat, and makes her an actress to watch for.
Stiller and Gerwig offer a humanity into the shifty romantic entanglement.
It may be frustrating to watch these confused souls trying to make something positive with their relationship, but there’s a tenderness within their performances that makes this bizarre match work.
Nevertheless, Greenberg (the movie and the character) feels a tad empty. We never approach the core of the protagonist’s emotional exile and don’t understand entirely what drives his instability. We want him to be redeemed but don’t know how he needs to be saved.
One’s enjoyment of Greenberg will take patience. The characters are usually hard to tolerate, and the humour is there but it’s as bitter as herbs on a seder plate.
It may take a while to warm up to the offbeat Greenberg, but it’s worth a look, mainly for discovering one actress you’ve never seen before (but will surely see again) and for discovering one actor who you’ve never seen quite like this before.