Greenberg

Noah Baumbach (The Squid and the Whale, Margot at the Wedding) gives us wry, emotionally detached, often blackly comic observations of messed-up people and the ways they relate (or fail to) with each other. Greenberg is another such slice of brokeness. Ben Stiller's Roger Greenberg, is the eponymous hero (of sorts) recovering from a nervous breakdown, house-sitting for his successful brother, looking up the friends of his youth and starting a tentative and not always healthy relationship with his brother's PA (Greta Gerwig) and generally aiming to do nothing for a while.

Stiller gives what may be the best performance of his career, subtly restrained with none of his usual manic energy. Gerwig is superb as the sympathetic heart of the film, as is Rhys Ifans as the childhood friend. However, the film starts very slowly and with Greenberg not being the most likeable character, it takes work to stick with it. Its worth the effort as the second half picks up greatly both in terms of pace and interest as we begin to get a bit of character development. Its neither as funny as The Squid and the Whale, nor as acutely observed as Baumbach's other films, but its still an intelligent, character driven piece.

Overall - 6.5/10 A long way from the director's best and never an easy watch. Ultimately, it just about rewards the effort it demands.