The 2005 Noah Baumbach movie that you need to watch on Netflix: ‘The Squid and the Whale’
Nobody breathes life into realism on screen as beautifully as Noah Baumbach does. While the Netflix audience already got a taste of his brilliance in recent times with Jay Kelly, the charisma of his approach goes way back in time, as far as the 2005 dark comedy movie, The Squid and the Whale.
If you love deeply human stories that leave you reflecting long after the credits roll, The Squid and the Whale is well worth your time.
Directed by Baumbach, whose credits include Marriage Story and Frances Ha, The Squid and the Whale centres on a family collapsing in 1980s Brooklyn in the aftermath of the messy, fractured divorce of Bernard and Joan, two parents from literary backgrounds, as their sons navigate the bitter separation and shifting allegiances.
The comedy drama follows Bernard, an unnecessarily arrogant, once successful novelist, who feels threatened not only by his declining career but also by his wife, Joan’s blossoming success. Unable to resolve their differences, they decide to divorce, eventually agreeing on a joint custody arrangement. But as things begin to worsen with each passing day, the older son, Walt, who idolises his father, starts living with Bernard, while the younger son, Frank, resides with Joan, until allegiances change.
If the premise somehow comes across as a depressing melodrama, well, it is far from it. The Squid and the Whale is essentially a dark comedy drama where the characters are laced with flaws, leading them to make terrible choices. Although the situation leaves everyone compromised, the movie specifically depicts how children tend to get caught in the crossfire of adult pettiness.
Baumbach, somehow, finds the humour in the pure awkwardness of a family split, making the storyline equal parts painful and hilarious. He inculcates the ridicule, confusion, and comedic pinches in the intimate details of behaviourism and quirks when Walt and Frank start inheriting negativity before coming to their senses.
It’s right there that the title – The Squid and the Whale – comes to play. The title is inspired by a famous diorama of a giant squid and a sperm whale at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, which represents a terrifying memory for Walt, eventually doubling as a metaphor for his parents.
While The Squid and the Whale is infamous for upholding the bizarrely raw without reservations, the movie perfectly fits the bill if you’re on the lookout for something brutally honest and dysfunctional.
And since the Netflix availability does half the work, all you actually need to do is hit the play button. If you’ve already done that, perhaps it’s time to revisit!