Those expecting a sparkling follow-up to The Squid and the Whale will be cruelly disappointed. Where that earlier film was a pointed critique of a certain way of life, Margot at the Wedding is a rambling reiteration of the theme that parents suck and so do literary types. Still, its got solid bits of observation to offset the caricatured moments.
Nicole Kidman stars as the titular Margot, an uptight writer visiting her sort-of estranged sister Pauline (Jennifer Jason Leigh) on the occasion of the latters wedding. Margot is a ball of neuroses and hypocrisies, a fact that doesnt escape the notice of her long-suffering son Claude (Zane Pais). But there is the issue of the sisters tense relationship, Paulines oafish fiancé Malcolm (Jack Black) and Margots extramarital affair with a pretentious jerk (Ciaran Hinds) to concern us.
This is a bit of a mess, with no clear thesis developing and many cheap shots taken. And although Leigh effortlessly knocks it out of the park, Kidman and Black seem out of their league and too burdened with their star personas to convince. Still, Noah Baumbach makes more out of this than most other directors of his generation might and wrings disquiet and pathos out of stuff that would be easy yocks in the hands of someone less capable.
Though the characters dont seem credible, the milieu does and Baumbachs hostile feelings toward it are readily apparent. If it seems like an unconsidered hatchet job, its at least deeply felt and painfully drawn. One wishes for more but this should keep you busy until the director figures out what to do next.
(Paramount Vantage)Nicole Kidman stars as the titular Margot, an uptight writer visiting her sort-of estranged sister Pauline (Jennifer Jason Leigh) on the occasion of the latters wedding. Margot is a ball of neuroses and hypocrisies, a fact that doesnt escape the notice of her long-suffering son Claude (Zane Pais). But there is the issue of the sisters tense relationship, Paulines oafish fiancé Malcolm (Jack Black) and Margots extramarital affair with a pretentious jerk (Ciaran Hinds) to concern us.
This is a bit of a mess, with no clear thesis developing and many cheap shots taken. And although Leigh effortlessly knocks it out of the park, Kidman and Black seem out of their league and too burdened with their star personas to convince. Still, Noah Baumbach makes more out of this than most other directors of his generation might and wrings disquiet and pathos out of stuff that would be easy yocks in the hands of someone less capable.
Though the characters dont seem credible, the milieu does and Baumbachs hostile feelings toward it are readily apparent. If it seems like an unconsidered hatchet job, its at least deeply felt and painfully drawn. One wishes for more but this should keep you busy until the director figures out what to do next.
