Greenberg
Greenberg stars Ben Stiller in possibly his most credible work to date and that’s saying a lot considering the production he’s delivered not to mention his litany of projects in development. As Roger Greenberg he’s a New York carpenter recovering from a nervous breakdown who picks possibly the worst place to recuperate – at his brother’s house in Las Angeles. This is the city where he grew up and that still harbours a lot of elements that he wanted to escape 15 years previous, most notably Beth (Jennifer Jason Leigh) the woman that he could not commit to – or maybe that could not commit to him. Carpentry is really a sideline to his passion which was music and before he left town his band was poised for greatness. We find this out from his one steady contact with the past Ivan Schrank (Rhys Ifans) who himself is possibly the worst person for Roger to associate with having come through rehab and currently on the verge of a divorce. Greenberg’s other close contact is Florence Marr (excellent newcomer Greta Gerwig) the timid and malleable assistant to his brother. They start a relationship that constantly meets with doom largely due to Roger’s grating personality that seems impossible to change. Greenberg was written for the screen by Jennifer Jason Leigh and her husband the notable director Noah Baumbach who also calls the shots here. They’ve produced a unique film that makes awkward amusing, ironically with lots of humour yet not a lot of laughs.