1995, USA
Comedy, Drama
In the vein of shaggy-haired Ethan Hawke philosophy flicks comes another film about a generation with the luxury of indecision after completing their expensive college careers. Yet Noah Baumbach’s (The Squid and the Whale) freshman endeavor manages to avoid the intravenous drip of the boob tube à la Reality Bites and the pompous prattle of Before Sunrise.
Baumbach’s characters are intelligent but misdirected. They have looked so far into their brilliant future that they would prefer to fast-forward over the awkward period of actually becoming their better selves. Even with the blaring caution sign of local bartender and perpetual student Chet (performed by perpetual indie-film sage character Eric Stoltz), a group of close male friends cannot quite find the courage to leave the comfort of their alma mater and thus continue to sink further into unshakable habits. As Chet forewarns, “Shoot for the stars and you hit the roof.”
Despite their female colleagues efforts to change and evolve, the men hang on to glories of the past. Same old bar, same old drink, same old game show trivia diversions. A Brooklyn home acts as a haven for the intellectual but unfocused. Chris Eigeman (“Gilmore Girls”) portrays surly mascot Max, haunted by his lack of direction and forever bringing down his cohorts. Baumbach’s real-life alum buddy Carlos Jacott (Grosse Pointe Blank) humorously portrays the group dunce, who somehow gets accepted to grad school despite wearing pajamas to his graduation. And the heart of the story lies in the love affair between Grover and Jane, competing lit majors who have great trouble in finding the right words.
What is beautiful in the telling is that this is a love story sheltered by a group comedy. Through flashbacks the audience learns of Grover and Jane’s meet cute, which initially seems only vaguely connected to the story at hand. Jane (“The Wonder Years’” Olivia d'Abo in subtly self-conscious form) is out of the picture attending school overseas and is only a thread to the story via answering machine messages. Dealing with a lack of commitment, Grover (an endearing Josh Hamilton) finds himself in meaningless freshman flings while struggling to absorb his parents’ lack of fidelity. Yet it is through these memories that the audience learns how the men’s unshakable habits came to be -- from the woman who has in turn shed them so effortlessly. As the women of this film progress toward their goals, the men remain frozen in the planning stages.
For a generation allowed to debate their future before actually beginning their careers, Baumbach has created engaging characters that are both familiar and frustrating. They are obviously intelligent with a craving for further education, but they were not raised with the automatic job-family-suburbs mentality. They expect their personal greatness to fall at their feet and fail to realize they must work to achieve it. And yet, it is very easy to stumble into this mindset, to wonder how to mine the brilliance within us all. Many of us wait, pick in hand, for a nudge in the right direction.
The Criterion Collection does as much as it can with slim pickings for extras, but the presentation is pleasing as always. As this is a relatively recent and underrated film, analysis is left only to the filmmaker and cast. Interviews created for the DVD include a detailed discussion with Baumbach concerning his anal preparation and misconceptions of this first cinematic endeavor, and nice but lengthy discussions by the actors of their early career reminiscences. Also included is Baumbach’s mildly funny 2000 short “Conrad and Butler Take a Vacation” starring Kicking’s Jacott and John Lehr, brief deleted scenes, IFC channel mini-interviews for the 1995 New York Film Fest and a trailer.