The Movie
Ben Stiller stars as the eponymous Greenberg, a prodigal sibling who, following a recent nervous breakdown, house-sits for his well-to-do brother in Los Angeles for a few weeks. He's now turning 41 and is proudly attempting to do nothing at all for the foreseeable future, and as the movie unfolds, we see him succeed laudably. This is unquestionably a character study, quite rare in modern Hollywood, with lots of subtle humor and observations and awkward moments, and its watchability owes much to co-star Greta Gerwig as the brother's angelic personal assistant, and of course to Stiller himself who uses his off-center screen persona to great effect. But unlike his comic affectations throughout Tropic Thunder or his explosive take on Mr. Furious in Mystery Men, here he is a deep well of neuroses, and never especially likeable. Largely this movie exists because Ben Stiller has rightly earned the creative clout that most actors dream of, and the chance to take artistic leaps such as this.
Also read Lexi Feinberg's review of Greenberg.
The Picture
Shot on 35mm film, Greenberg shows varying degrees of grain from shot to shot, but is natural and enjoyable overall. Some shots have bit of a haze to them, which I chalked up to the less-than-idyllic, possibly smoggy portions of L.A. where the movie was filmed, and early scenes have the loose look and feel of a Seventies movie. There is a fair amount of twitch in soft areas of the 2.4:1 frame, and backgrounds can look a little hinky at times, preventing this master from achieving its maximum potential.
The Sound
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound holds surprising moments like a helicopter flyover that had me wondering if my home was being visited by some head of state. The environments and "action" are not especially complex but are extremely well-rendered, be they the details in a busy restaurant or the bass and surrounds during a heavy rainstorm. Most memorable though are the songs, which are not just remixed for the home theater but also balanced and edited in interesting ways for dramatic effect.
The Extras
The bonus materials are remarkably lean here, primarily a trio of featurettes ranging from a-minute-and-a-half to about three, all in HD. "A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Greenberg" is really just a trailer with a couple of actor soundbites; "Greenberg Loves Los Angeles" collects comments from the director, location manager and others; and "Noah Baumbach Takes a Novel Approach" has just a few seconds of insight about the focus on character, while the rest is movie clips. The disc is BD-Live-enabled, with support for pocket BLU control/take-away content as well as social BLU for online connection to friends.
Final Thoughts
Director/co-writer Noah Baumbach and his star Ben Stiller have created something quite different in Greenberg, for better or worse. The movie likely won't look or sound better than it does on this Blu-ray anytime soon, but the nature of the movie and scant extras suggest this one might be better suited for a rental.
Product Details
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