Noah Baumbach | BS Reviews

Inspired in part by his own divorce, Noah Baumbach (Frances Ha) writes and directs the story of an artist couple at the end of their marriage. Charlie (Adam Driver; Paterson) is a play director and Nicole (Scarlett Johansson; Jojo Rabbit) is an actress in New York. They have a young son together, but, due to differences in long-term goals, have decided to divorce. There was no inciting incident, just a gradual diverging that has led to their current situation with no visible hostilities from either party.

While Baumbach gives both parents plenty of attention, he isn’t completely even-handed. It may be due to personal biases or due to Charlie being partly based on Baumbach himself, but the film places more blame on Nicole. Neither lead is a villain here as both husband and wife make mistakes, but Nicole escalates the situation by hiring a vicious divorce attorney named Nora (Laura Dern; Blue Velvet). They had initially agreed to using a mediator to keep lawyers out of the picture, but when Nicole violates that agreement it makes her initially appear like the aggressor. Charlie is served with divorce papers and, without representation of his own, is put in a vulnerable position as Nora threatens to take everything.

Nora is an utterly reprehensible character.

If nothing else, the film will make every viewer hate divorce attorneys. Charlie’s initial lawyer is an older man that gives him circular contradictory advice and seems partially defeated before even starting. When Charlie switches to a high-end option (Ray Liotta; Goodfellas), he is stuck with an effective but overly aggressive lawyer that curses with every breath about how Charlie is damaging his own position. As bad as Liotta’s character is, he is at least upfront with his hostility. Nora is an absolute abomination. Dern, who is normally immensely likable in all her roles, plays Nora as a slimy, two-faced villain that will politely screw you over while brandishing a fake smile. In both cases the lawyers end up costing tens of thousands of dollars to the detriment of the family. One character notes that they’re taking from their son’s college money to pay for legal fees.

After the lawyers become involved, Marriage Story is able to effectively show the emotional strain caused by the divorce. Charlie and Nicole’s divorce is initially completely amicable. They know they need to separate, but there is no bad blood until attorneys start making demands. Both threaten to claim spousal support, something neither originally wanted, and slander each other using inconsequential facts to portray the other as an irresponsible parent. This creates resentment between Charlie and Nicole and results in hurtful screaming matches where long buried thoughts surface as devastating insults. Every part of their arguing feels raw and unfiltered, like pent up frustration rather than dramatic dialogue. The legal maneuvering and the following emotional harm warps their priorities and causes them to fight for minor wins instead of creating the best situation for their family. By showing how Charlie and Nicole’s relationship is upended by the legal process, Baumbach succeeds in making Marriage Story a sensitive and realistic examination of the messiness of divorce.

4/5 stars.

After starring in and often co-writing several independent comedies and dramas, Greta Gerwig (Frances Ha) finally makes her solo directorial debut. Having worked with many talented directors, her style bears some similarities to her previous collaborators, especially Noah Baumbach, but she has a voice all her own. Her first outing confirms her as a genuine talent able to bring intimate stories to life. Lady Bird follows Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson (Saoirse Ronan; Brooklyn) through her last year of high school as she deals with the trials and tribulations that come along with transitioning to adulthood and independence.

With her vibrant reddish hair and anarchic mindset, Lady Bird is the epitome of an awkward teen. She is clearly an intelligent young woman, but doesn’t have good grades or the right look and attitude to fall into the popular crowd. She wants to escape Sacramento and go to a college on the east coast, but doesn’t have the resume or money to do so. She longs to become someone more than she is. Someone more sophisticated than her current self. Ronan plays Lady Bird as equal parts defiant and confused as she stumbles through the ups and downs of her life. There are moments when her American accent falters, particularly when yelling, but overall it holds up nicely. She is essentially a younger version of the character type that Gerwig almost exclusively plays and her youth, and the naivete that comes with it, make her flaws all the more sympathetic.

Lady Bird’s often explosive relationship with her mother is the central conflict of the film.

Gerwig may have created the first coming of age story about a millennial, by a millennial. From the introduction of cell phones – rich kids first, of course – to the Justin Timberlake songs in the background of a party, the details of the setting ring painfully true to anyone who grew up in the period. Despite being shot digitally, Gerwig adds a noticeable film grain and a uses a softer focus that drenches the film in her nostalgia for the past. While she has stated that the film is not based on specific events from her life, it’s hard to shake the feeling that we are watching a fictionalized version of her own adolescence.

More than anything else, Lady Bird feels honest. Gerwig’s approach to her characters is reminiscent of the great Edward Yang (Yi Yi). She exposes the flaws, the beauty, and the heartbreak of ordinary people normally hidden from view. Lady Bird’s struggles at school, with boys, and, most of all, her complicated relationship with her mother have a gentle, but raw veracity. Her bland suburban life isn’t glamorized, and each moment is immensely relatable. She may be deliberately contrarian, but she does so in a way that is too familiar for us to fault her. Each outburst or fight with her mom comes from deep-seeded insecurity. As a teenager facing adulthood, Lady Bird is searching for belonging in a changing world and Gerwig has a deep compassion for journey. Her sensitive touch and nostalgic tone make Lady Bird a beautiful, refreshingly honest, and poignant coming of age story for a new generation.

5/5 stars.

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Tag Archives: Noah Baumbach

Marriage Story (2019): The Messiness of Divorce

Lady Bird (2017): Honest Transition to Adulthood

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