MOVIE INFO
Noah Boaumbach's comedy While We're Young stars Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts as Josh and Cornelia, a childless New York married couple in their mid-forties. As their other friends all start having children, the couple gravitates toward a young hipster couple named Jamie (Adam Driver) and Darby (Amanda Seyfried). He's an aspiring documentary filmmaker, a vocation Josh already has. Soon the older couple begins enjoying the energy they feel haging out with the younger generation, but eventually Josh begins to suspect his new best friend might not be as straightforward and trustworthy as he thought. While We're Young screened at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.
Noah Boaumbach's comedy While We're Young stars Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts as Josh and Cornelia, a childless New York married couple in their mid-forties. As their other friends all start having children, the couple gravitates toward a young hipster couple named Jamie (Adam Driver) and Darby (Amanda Seyfried). He's an aspiring documentary filmmaker, a vocation Josh already has. Soon the older couple begins enjoying the energy they feel haging out with the younger generation, but eventually Josh begins to suspect his new best friend might not be as straightforward and trustworthy as he thought. While We're Young screened at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.
Rating: R (for language)
Directed By: Noah Baumbach
Written By: Noah Baumbach
In Theaters: Mar 27, 2015 Wide
On DVD: Jun 30, 2015
US Box Office: $7.6M
Runtime: 1 hr. 34 min.
A24 - Official Site
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This scene happens after a long night of hallucinating and vomiting. Fun times. ©A24 Films
A movie about growing up after living life precariously through a couple of hipsters...
So if you didn't read whatever I've put up there or didn't read the Wiki for it or just want to read my recollection of it here it comes. Also SPOILERS.
Well, the movie is about a couple of people who are fast approaching their mid-life crisis and everyone around them seems to be all grown up and having babies. They reason to themselves that their lives are fine and perfect for them and how they can drop whatever it is they're doing at the moment to go gallivanting around the world but of course they won't actually do it. Deep down they realize they're in a rut. Then one day while Josh (Ben Stiller) the husband is teaching his class on making documentary films a young man named Jamie (Adam Driver) and his wife Darby (Amanda Seyfried) come up to him to gush about how he has loved his past work and so on before inviting both him and his wife Cornelia (Naomi Watts) out to dinner. During dinner Josh becomes more interested in Jamie and his wife and later talks to his wife about hanging out with them more.
So it goes that the more they hang out with the young couple they become more drawn to them and their lifestyle and every time they meet with their other same aged couple friends they find them to be old and stuffy. So they begin to drift away from their friends to spend more time with the young couple. During all this Jamie begins to tell Josh about his idea for a documentary and asks for his advice. One thing leads to another and Josh ends up being the cameraman for the project. Meanwhile his own documentary project lingers in post-production limbo with no clear end in sight and a meandering story. Also he's running out of money. So when Jamie hears from Josh's father in law that he could help hook Josh up with an investor when they bump into him one day, Jamie pushes Josh to meet with the investor. Unfortunately for Josh the investor isn't exactly on the same page or even on the same chapter when Josh tries to sell him the idea.
This is during the fantasy and vomit filled evening. Guess what they're pretending to be? ©A24 Films
A little later after a couples retreat that involved group therapy utilizing hallucinogenics and lots of vomiting Josh notices something in Jamie's documentary that he's been helping him with. What he's noticed makes him think that Jamie hasn't exactly been telling him the truth. And after recalling the events and what was said that suspicion becomes stronger. So off he goes to find out if his suspicions really are correct and after a couple of chats he knows his suspicions to be true.
With the facts now on his side he goes in search of Jamie who at the moment is attending an event held in honor of Josh's father in law. Also ever since he and Josh bumped into Josh's father in law he's been secretly talking to him to gain favor as well as asking for help with his documentary. He's also managed to get Cornelia to work on his project. When Josh shows up at the event he confronts Jamie who admits to what he's done but Josh isn't satisfied and tells him he needs to admit to what he's done in front of Cornelia and her father. But unfortunately what Jamie's done isn't seen by either of them as all that terrible. This frustrates Josh and he leaves.
The movie ends with Jamie finding the success that he won't openly admit and Josh and Cornelia heading to Haiti to meet their adopted child. While waiting for their flight they watch a toddler playing with a smartphone.
The end. You'll probably find the Wiki page for it has a better write up for it. Probably.
What happens when you're single and you're invited by a bunch of mommies to hang out with them? ©A24 Films
So what did I think about a movie where an older couple is impressed by a couple of hipsters?
The last movie I saw Ben Stiller in was The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013) I think and I loved that movie and Ben's performance in it. I didn't catch him in Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (2014). The Ben in this movie is the Ben in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. If you loved his performance in that movie then you'll love him in this. Naomi Watts is just brilliant here as well. As for the hipster couple played by Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfried, I though Amanda was pretty good but Adam's portrayal of a hipster seemed a little caricatured of the stereotype. Also he looks and acts a little like Keanu Reeves at times. So yeah, the performance overall was very good.
The story was entertaining and does make you think, if you're the kind to allow yourself to think about how a movie's story can reflect your own or somehow be applied to your own. Yes this is that kind of movie. It's a movie that wants you to think about things which in this case is about life.
It would seem that Ben Stiller needs to put some sort of thing with wheels under him in every movie. ©A24 Films
There's a lot of good reviews out there from critics about this movie and I'd lean more towards agreeing with them then disagreeing. The movie is categorized as a Comedy and Drama but truth be told there's more Drama then Comedy and what Comedy is to be had depends upon your idea of comedy. There isn't much to laugh out loud about. Remember how I mentioned The Secret Life of Walter Mitty? Now that movie was also quite amusing and funny but it also wasn't laugh out loud funny either. This is like that. But that being said, I don't think this is a movie for everybody. This is a movie for those who not only enjoyed movies like The Secret Life of Walter Mitty but other movies that can be considered similar or in the same vein. Think indie movies or movies that make you think about Wes Anderson or stories with depth that require a little bit more involvement from you to enjoy it.
So all in all, yes I did enjoy it. This movie had a simple story told very well and in an interesting manner and had actors who were very good in their respective roles. So I'd give this movie a decent 3 out of 5.
Check out the trailer below to see if this is your kind of movie.
BIG THANKS TO THE TEAM AT TGV CINEMAS FOR INVITING ME TO THE PRESS SCREENING FOR WHILE WE'RE YOUNG!!
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