The Criterion Collection recently released Noah Baumbach’s Kicking and Screaming on DVD.
For years, I’ve heard from friends and critics that this movie is great, outstanding, excellent (and several other hype words). Eric received the movie via Netflix last week, and I decided to finally watch what was supposed to be one of the best movies ever made.
Apparently, I didn’t see it. What I saw was a whiny and pretentious film with four highly unlikeable main characters. On top of that was stilted writing and technical film making mistakes.
The story revolves around four recent U.S. East Coast college graduates trying to figure out what they’re going to do with the rest of their lives. Maybe if I watched it right out of college, I may have enjoyed and identified with it more. However, a great film shouldn’t relate to only a small cross section of society. It should appeal to everyone, no matter age, income or race.
If others that read this blog have seen this movie and have a different opinion, I’d love to read them. But in the meantime, I guess this is just another example of hype overlapping quality.
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I saw it right a few months after graduating, heard all of the hype around it and arrived at the same conclusion.
The guy who played Otis did a good job though. And I stole his shtick about wanting to come up with a gang name for his buddies. I think he came up with Jets and Sharks.
Can’t remember, but he had the only decent lines in an otherwise overwrought movie.
I didn’t think it was a bad movie. Definitely an honest snapshot of bratty guys who think they’re above the college crowd but still hang out with the college crowd.
I hated that movie as well. Eric Stolz is a self absorbed douchebag.
i’m going to have to come out and say that i am indeed one of those people that loves this movie. but then i saw it in college when we were leading very similar pre-grad lives, so i guess it was the fact that we actually related. i don’t know how i would feel about it if i hadn’t seen it until now, but then i guess we were all very different people 10 years ago.