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MOVIES / ON DVD / THE SQUID AND THE WHALE
The Squid and the Whale

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The Squid and the Whale (2005)

94%
100%
84%
N/A
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N/A
94 %
Reviews Counted: 136 Fresh: 128  Rotten:8 Average Rating: 8/10
 
Consensus: This is a piercingly honest, acidly witty look at divorce and its impact on a family. This is a piercingly honest, acidly witty look at divorce and its impact on a family. more
 
Rated: 15
Runtime: 88 mins
Theatrical Release: 07-04-2006
Synopsis:
Noah Baumbach's THE SQUID AND THE WHALE is an excruciatingly humane, often hilarious portrait of a disintegrating family in mid-1980s Brooklyn. Set in the stately yet off-kilter neighborhood of Park Slope, the film tells the story of the Berkmans, a quintessentially New York family... [More]
Noah Baumbach's THE SQUID AND THE WHALE is an excruciatingly humane, often hilarious portrait of a disintegrating family in mid-1980s Brooklyn. Set in the stately yet off-kilter neighborhood of Park Slope, the film tells the story of the Berkmans, a quintessentially New York family struggling to keep things together. Family patriarch Bernard (Jeff Daniels) is a published author and writing teacher whose insecurity over his own lack of recognition continues to plague him. Meanwhile, his wife, Joan (Laura Linney), is grappling with her own sense of unsettlement. Their sons, who are caught in the crossfire, express their confusion in different ways: 16-year-old Walt (Jesse Eisenberg) tries to pass off Pink Floyd's "Hey You" as his own hit in the school talent show, while his 12-year-old brother Frank (Owen Kline) begins to explore his burgeoning sexuality and alcoholism. When Bernard and Joan finally decide to separate, the family must confront their unraveling situation head on. Rarely has family dysfunction been captured so frankly and honestly as in THE SQUID AND THE WHALE. Baumbach claims his film is only semi-autobiographical, but, from the pitch-perfect writing and nostalgic tone, it feels as if we're watching home videos of the writer-director's past. Featuring an outstanding pop-music soundtrack (Bert Jansch, the Feelies, Lou Reed), the film also boasts performances that seem certain to earn end-of-the-year accolades. [Less]

Genre: Dramas

Starring: Jeff Daniels, Laura Linney, Jesse Eisenberg, Owen Kline, William Baldwin

Director: Noah Baumbach
Screenwriter: Noah Baumbach
Producer: Wes Anderson, Peter Newman

DVD Info

Release:

Sep 3, 2007

[DVD Details]
  • DVD Features
  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Audio:

    • Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
    • Dolby Digital Surround - French
    • Subtitles - English - Close Captioned
    • Subtitles - French - Optional
    • Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85

    Additional Release Material:

    • Audio Commentary - Noah Baumbach - Director
    • Behind the Scenes - Featurette
    • Interviews - Noah Baumbach - Director

    Reviews

     
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    1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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    09/28/06 03:15 AM
    Sight and Sound
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    04/11/06 03:16 AM
    BBC
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    04/08/06 03:37 AM
    Peter Bradshaw
    Guardian [UK]
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    04/07/06 03:16 AM
    Empire Magazine
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    Beautifully written, moving and frequently hilarious drama with terrific performances and superb, Oscar-nominated dialogue - this is one of the best films of the year.

    Full Review | Comment
    04/06/06 03:15 AM
    Matthew Turner
    ViewLondon
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    02/09/06 03:16 AM
    Time Out
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    A complex, bristling film that resonates on many levels without ever overstating its case.

    Full Review | Comment
    12/02/05 01:13 AM
    Rich Cline
    Shadows on the Wall
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    11/01/07 03:15 AM
    David Ansen
    Newsweek
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    08/16/07 03:15 AM
    Ben Walters
    Time Out New York
    Ratings Image

    Like the diorama in New York's Museum of Natural History from which the film's title is derived, The Squid And The Whale depicts deep-seated conflict in a manner that is at once exquisitely lifelike and mesmerisingly awful to look at.

    Full Review | Comment
    08/06/07 03:33 AM
    Anton Bitel
    Eye for Film
    N/R

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    Full Review | Comment
    11/11/06 04:16 AM
    Stuart Klawans
    Nation
    Ratings Image

    Un retrato honesto y revelador de la descomposición de un matrimonio, visto desde la perspectiva de los hijos adolescentes.

    Full Review | Comment
    08/11/06 03:25 PM
    Enrique Buchichio
    Uruguay Total
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    ...Baumbach's most emotionally potent and visually coherent film to date.

    Full Review | Comment
    08/05/06 09:15 PM
    Josh Ralske
    All Movie Guide
    N/R

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    05/12/06 03:15 AM
    Jim Lane
    Sacramento News & Review
    Ratings Image

    Doesn't break much new ground in terms of parental misconduct or adolescent sexual confusion.

    Full Review | Comment
    05/04/06 02:55 PM
    Matt Pais
    Metromix.com
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    It's brittle, yet tender. Familiar, yet fresh. Intelligent with shooting pains of unpredictability, the film offers no simple answers to unanswerable questions. Instead it leave us with a heartfelt portrayal that involves and touches us.

    Full Review | Comment
    04/02/06 05:36 PM
    Urban Cinefile Critics
    Urban Cinefile
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    03/04/06 03:41 AM
    Scott Nash
    Three Movie Buffs
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    Relentless in its condemnation of childish parenting and irresponsibility, Noah Baumbach's uncomfortable The Squid and the Whale ranks as one of 2005's best films by pulling no punches whatsoever.

    Full Review | Comment
    02/03/06 07:20 AM
    Gabe Leibowitz
    eCinemaCenter.com
    Ratings Image

    An insightful, unblinking, bittersweet and funny portrait of a family in the process of a bitter divorce.

    Full Review | Comment
    02/02/06 11:12 PM
    Robert Roten
    Laramie Movie Scope
    Ratings Image

    As smart and strongly acted as the movie is, you're still left with the feeling that it's ultimately a rather thin slice of personal history that would have been better left as a short story or a lifetime of therapy sessions.

    Full Review | Comment
    01/05/06 12:28 PM
    Glenn Whipp
    Los Angeles Daily News
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