The Squid And The Whale

2005

Rated:
70
from 14,910 members

Based on the true childhood experience of director Noah Baumbach and his brother, this quirky, offbeat and hilarious black comedy illustrates the real life struggles of a family splintered by divorce. The Squid and The Whale tells the story of the patriarch of an eccentric Brooklyn family who once had been a great novelist but .. Read more

Starring	Jeff Daniels, Laura Linney, Jesse Eisenberg, Owen Kline
Director	Noah Baumbach
Run time	77 mins
Genres	Comedy, Drama

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Critics' reviews (4) of The Squid And The Whale
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Both sharply comical and piercingly sad....The film's tableau of domestic absurdity is likely to tickle, and also to lacerate, anyone who has either raised a child or been one
- New York Times
- Posted 08 Oct 2007
Baumbach has crafted this tale out of real love....[He] tells the story with great fluidity....It's a breakthrough work and one of the year's most powerful pictures
- Premiere
- Posted 08 Oct 2007
Most helpful member's review of The Squid And The Whale
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39 out of 45 people found this review helpful

'Very Kafkaesque'

This film might not be for everyone - it deals with a family in Brooklyn in 1985 and the way a divorce impacts upon two sons.

Jeff Daniels brilliantly plays the father, a bitter, patronising intellectual struggling to get his novel published while his wife, played by the underrated Laura Linney is gaining recognition for her published work.

The two sons come to terms with the divorce in different ways and the style of film and budget mean that we feel very close to the characters and what they are doing.

The interplay between the four major characters is excellent and the eldest son, Walt searches desperately for his own voice while the youngest son looks to gain attention.

A rewarding film that with a serious central theme fits a fair amount of humour, pathos and satire into just less than 80 minutes.
- - JimmyConway from London
  - Posted 31 Aug 2006 16:13
Most recent members' review of The Squid And The Whale
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1 out of 1 person found this review helpful

Squid & Whale

quirky, funny, believable characters
- - bobnick from Bristol
  - Posted 03 Feb 2008 15:58
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