While We're Young

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While We're Young is an art film drama / comedy from writer / director Noah Baumbach. It stars Ben Stiller, Naomi Watts, Adam Driver, and Amanda Seyfried.

Noah Baumbach is a New York based director known for The Squid and the Whale (2005), Margot at the Wedding (2007), and Greenberg (2010). He has a new comedy called Mistress America coming out August 2015.

Since Baumbach wrote and directed While We're Young, is it good?

1. The Good
While We're Young is full of great ideas. Ben Stiller and Namoi Watts play a 40 something couple with no children who are coming to terms with their increasing age. This is what interested me. I'm in my mid 30's and my wife and I don't have any kids. This made me curious about the movie, and this is where the title is derived, "while we're young." This is a compelling and interesting idea that has lots of potential for comedy and drama.

Josh (Ben Stiller) and Cornelia (Naomi Watts) befriend a 20 something couple and quickly begin to feel old. Jamie (Adam Driver) and Darby (Amanda Seyfried) introduce their older friends to their hipster lifestyle and millennial sensibilities. They live in a "cool" loft space and even have a live chicken as a pet. They're fedora wearing cool kids who follow their whims. The contrast of the older generation and younger generation is a great concept for a movie. It's similar to the premise of Greenberg in which Ben Stiller's character also makes some comments about how society is changing.

Josh and Jamie bond over making documentaries. They meet when Josh gives a presentation about a documentary he has been working on for a long time. His wife's father is a famous documentarian from the 70's and 80's. I won't spoil it, but there are some wonderful questions brought up about integrity, artistry, and priorities. There are lots of wonderful ideas.

2. The Bad
In the grand finale, While We're Young wanders from its own narrative and never quite drives its point home. I think it's meant to be a clever twist, and make the audience think. To that end, it does an ok job. However, I think it could have been more defined.

Would I recommend it?
Skip it. Life is short. There are many other wonderful movies out there that deserve your attention.

Alternatives to this movie:

 Saving Mr. Banks (2013) - The dramatic and fascinating true story about how Walt Disney managed to convince the author of Mary Poppins, P.L. Travers, to allow Disney Studios to convert her beloved books into a light-hearted children's movie. Hilarious at times (PL Travers was notoriously grumpy), and very moving at other times, this movie is great.

The Imitation Game (2014) - Awesome suspense drama, and another true story, about mathematician Alan Turing trying to crack codes during World War II. He eventually came up with some pretty crazy ideas and even included a totally awkward love story.

Wild (2014) - Reese Witherspoon plays Cheryl, a young woman who has had more than she can deal with in her personal life, so she sets out on a journey to hike over 1,000 miles to find peace. It's also based on a true story and is much better than While We're Young, if you haven't seen it.

What do you think? Have you seen While We're Young? What do you think of my alternatives? Comment and Subscribe!



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