Kicking and Screaming

Movies 365: Day 35 – Kicking and Screaming (1995)

As a huge fan of Noah Baumbach’s 2005 film The Squid and the Whale, I was eagerly anticipating sitting down to watch Kicking and Screaming, Baumbach’s first film, and one I had heard a lot of good things about. Following a group of recent college grads, Kicking and Screaming explores their first six months or so out of college. Max (Chris Eigeman), a gloomy ladies man, Skippy (Jason Wiles) a more or less happy go lucky guy who is dating a current student Miami (Parker Posey), Otis (Carlos Jacott) a man child fond of wearing pajama tops as t-shirts, and Grover (Josh Hamilton) whose girlfriend Jane (Olivia d’Abo) announces that she’s leaving for Prague at a graduation party. The four guys flit around their college town, going through what is now commonly referred to as a “quarterlife crisis,” as they try and figure out their lives post graduation.

At times entertaining and funny, Kicking and Screaming unfortunately seems to suffer the same problems as it ’s characters, with people so rudderless and without direction, not much happens. It’s a disappointment, as many of Baumbach’s jokes land well, and the performers all do admirably, especially Eigeman and Eric Stoltz in a small role as Chet, a permanent student who also tends bar at the gangs’ favorite watering hole. Though I did enjoy Kicking and Screaming, I’ll take The Squid and the Whale over it any day.

Last updated: 2010-03-05 03:15:59 by user05