The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)

Plant an academic-artistic Jewish-American family in contemporary Manhattan, and you have neurotic conversation, bruising relationships, and repentance all learned from Woody Allen if not for real. Even more than Woody's endearing situations, this one is bloodier but more forgiving.

Noah Baumbach's Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected),a Netflix original, is touchingly funny about two Meyerowitz sons, musician Danny (Adam Sandler) and financier Matt (Ben Stiller) celebrating their mediocre-sculptor-professor father, Harold (Dustin Hoffman), and their constant jockeying for position with him and themselves. It's not a hilarious comedy, but the nerdy-New-Yorker motif shows it is still satisfyingly amusing.

Baumbach perfectly tunes us to Danny's alienation from Dad and Matt's clueless realization of his role as favored one. Danny's opening sequence trying to find a parking spot in the East Village is an emblem of his consistent failures and the disintegration of the fractured family holding on to hopes about the deed for Dad's apartment.

Most of what happens is off-center from the truth of things, as is probably true of most families whose perception of each other is skewered by family culture and parental politics. The dialogue is both banal and profound, just the way we all live except that few of us are Jewish or live in Manhattan, two invaluable elements that provide subtle hilarity. When feelings are exposed, the dialogue turns almost Eugene O'Neill-like.

Most touching about these stories, which are chapters partly devoted to the three males, are almost seamless revelations about the family and their unspooling in a leisurely but sometimes devastating way. About the daily dialogue, Baumbach can't be bested, maybe except for Allen in his prime and Baumbach's girlfriend, Greta Gerwig, whose wispiness is gone from Baumbach here, but all the better for this urbane grit: "Brian and James, who you've met..." Matthew "Very charming interracial, homosexual couple, and smart about the work. They were familiar with Gilded Halfwing [Harold's prized but ignored sculpture]." Harold

Ah yes, family dysfunctional. Everyone has it, and frankly its an over mined sub genre in film. With entries often pushing melodrama and character arcs to neat, organised catharsis, it has become as predictable as bad romantic comedies. Which is why i'm so happy to report that 'The Meyerowitz Stories' is one of the best dramedies I've seen all year! 

Told through various character perspectives in no real cinematic structure, there's a naturalism to the style. A humbleness that revels in subtleties rather than climatic overtures. And by god is it refreshing. There isn't a drop of pretension to be found in the film, no barriers between you and the characters, who are all lovingly played by an assured, veteran cast. 

Adam Sandler is a standout in what is already an outstanding ensemble. This is a performance quite different from what you might expect. It isn't a retread of Punch Drunk Love, or a dramatic overhaul of his past characters either. He instead lends a striking amount of humanity to Danny, which can be said of the entire cast. But Ben Stiller in particular deserves a shout out. I've never quite seen him pull off drama this straight faced and earnest before, and like most of the film, the sporadic dramatic beats are interspersed throughout his performance. 

Yeah i cant quite say enough nice things about 'The Meyerowitz Stories'. This was a joy to watch.So i'll just say this, if you love Wes Anderson films, in particular 'The Royal Tenenbaums' this is an easy recommend. And while it lacks the formalism and ridiculously cinematic glory of Anderson's style, there is far more humanity is Noah Baumbach straight faced approach. Meyerowitz Stories may not provide anything radically new, but it provides a great entry in the tired list of dysfunctional comedies, along with some of the year's best performances.

It's a very good movie: story, atmosphere, characters, lines, actors of course. As I'm italian, I can't tell why. But you can read what wrote who liked it, and trust them. Or trust who didn't. But remember that we choose to like or unlike, so it's too easy (and childish) write things like "the worst", "two hours I'll never get back" or other stupid unoriginal but thinking to be original stuff. We have to dive into movies. They are an escape from serie, like healthy food. If you prefer fast or sugar food, you're welcome. But save your time from poisoning our water. We are swimming.

One reviewer said it was Manhattan and a Jewish family, that covered it. My family is not from Manhattan nor is it Jewish and I saw us in this movie. It's a mirror of families everywhere and every color in every place. We all have "that" father/grandfather, "that" mother/stepmother, "that" sibling. Or cousin or uncle or or or. We all know that family and have lived with someone like them. It was nice to see that We are NOT alone!!

A treat of a movie! Packs an emotional punch, laugh out loud funny at times but sad at every turn, a movie that strikes a realistic tone in the presentation of family conflicts. Reminded me a lot of Little Miss Sunshine. The ensemble cast was fantastic - Adam Sandler a revelation. Presented as a series of connected short stories focusing on different members of the family I was left very involved and wanting more. It's not often I finish a movie wishing they'd given us another half hour.