Review of The Squid and the Whale (2005) by Jay R — 25 Nov 2009

A devastating honest portrayal of a family torn apart by a divorce. The performances are all riveting, the writing is fantastic, but the direction is a bit sketchy at times and I wish the ending would have really hammered the message home a lot better than it did.

Still, The Squid and the Whale is worth looking at because of its high realism and honest approach. Its very hard to understand this movie, and maybe you wont. But that is of course the point, this is one of those movies that you don't know why you are watching it, but you can't look away.

Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney give huge performances as the mother and father, while Jesse Eisenberg and Owen Kline were sensational in their supporting roles. This movie is for you to make your own interpretation about.

Nobody will ever see this movie the same way, which is what I admired about it. It portrays everything crudely and obscenely because that is how odd life is sometimes. Noah Baumbach is a great write, but this movie could have used a different director.

Still, with a budget of 1.5 million, this is quite a movie. Its ideas are big, but the connections and extensions are for us to make. Thumbs up!