Most Well Written Film in a Long Time. I cried...

Rating: 10/10 (7 December 2019)

One of the best and most emotional films of the year. I cried. I haven't seen any of Noah Baumbach's previous films but I really want to now after seeing this film. To start off I want to talk about the two main actors, Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver, they are incredible. Their performances are perfect, not only the best I've seen this year, but some of the best I've ever seen. Scarlett's character was one who is asked to showcase a lot of emotion, and I was shocked to see that she was attempting to hold back that emotion for a good portion of the film which made her performance all the more real and powerful. And not held back in the sense that the emotion is not present, but rather in a sense that it's realistic, because when she's speaking around other people it makes sense why the character wouldn't want to cry in front of them. I thought it was so brilliant that she found the perfect point where it looked like she was tearing up but not quite crying. And Adam Driver just brought so much passion and expression to this role. He really immersed himself deep into this character to the point where I forgot I was watching Adam Driver acting and I instead just saw the character. And I think the best kind of acting is the kind where you stop seeing the actor and you just see the character. Quite frankly both of them deserve to win Oscars for these roles. I love Joaquin Phoenix and he's long overdue for an Oscar, but I think Adam Driver deserves it more. The writing for this film was superb, the script and dialogue were perfect. Quite honestly I think this is the best screenplay of the year, I hope the Academy honors it with an Oscar as well. Noah Baumbach did a good job directing as well, there were plenty of long takes that really captured the power of the scene. This film is very character driven and dialogue heavy, it's a very quiet film, nothing miraculous is happening on screen. When it comes to heavily dramatic films such as this one, there's a lot of directors who would attempt to make a lot of scenes over the top, overdramatized, and larger than what they really are or should be. But Noah Baumbach portrays this story about a divorce and all the dramatic scenes in a very realistic manner that never felt over dramatic or went too far, and I thought that was absolutely brilliant. As far as the characters go, they are flawless. They are the most fleshed out and deeply explored characters I've seen this year. They are incredibly interesting and complex. Quite honestly this film showcases a story that's been told before, but it makes all those films that came before it look shallow and underdeveloped. The film doesn't explain the characters to you, it just presents them, and it doesn't take sides with either one, because they are so complex that quite honestly there isn't a good guy or bad guy in this scenario. They're simply just two people who aren't good for each other and are just not working. Whichever one you found yourself siding with, in the end the film makes you realize that it doesn't matter. The score from Randy Newman was also fantastic, it complimented the visuals and conveyed the tone of the film very well. The best aspects of this film were the acting and the writing, so you should see it on those merits alone, and it's on Netflix right now so you can watch it in the comfort of your own home. I thought this was one the best and most powerful films of the year and just so well written.