We are asked to eavesdrop in the tense relationship of two sisters that are as different as day from night, and who have been estranged for quite some time. Margot, the most successful of the the siblings, is a writer of some notoriety, while Pauline is a home person, who admits her best asset might be in her skills as a cook. These women have grown apart for some time. The occasion for the visit is to celebrate Pauline's wedding to Malcolm, an oddball of a man that is her living companion.
Margot has a son, Claude, and is married to Jim, also a writer. As the two sisters meet, some of the old resentment suddenly appears to be a thing of the past. After all, this is a joyous occasion, even if it isn't Pauline's first marriage. As they catch up, Pauline tells her sister she is pregnant and asks her to keep the secret because she hasn't told Malcolm yet.
Unfortunately, Margot visit to her sister's is actually an excuse for getting together with the man she has been seeing, the pretentious Dick Koosman, who also happen to be a neighbor. To complicate things further, Margot tells Claude about his aunt's pregnancy. Claude, in turn, decides to reveal the secret to his cousin Ingrid, which infuriates Pauline. This is the last straw in the sisters' long hatred for one another. It is easy to see why, Margot, on the surface seems to have it all, but does she? Pauline, a woman without much to give has clung to Malcom as her last hope for happiness, but unfortunately, she too, is betrayed by her man.
Noah Baumbach's "Margot at the Wedding" is a difficult picture to sit through. We feel as though we have been invited to witness all the hidden emotions between two women who would be better off enjoying each other, yet, they are deeply flawed and can't get a grip on what is important and what is needed. Margot is forever writing things in her diary which later on appear in her highbrow pieces in The New Yorker, or Harper's, or some other intellectual publication.
Nicole Kidman's Margot is at times brilliant, as well as repulsive. She was given a plum role in which to appear; while one's reaction is one of disbelief in the way she acts toward Pauline, it is part of her makeup as a bitter woman. Jennifer Jason Leigh, one of the most mannered actresses of her generation, is actually a surprise in the film. It might be due to having her husband directing, and having been asked to tone her performance down. Jack Black, another annoying performer, does his best work in films as the idiotic Malcolm. John Turturro, Ciaran Hands, and the rest play as an ensemble.
While this film, which is obviously not for everyone, will displease some viewers, it has its merits in the way Mr. Baumbach moves his characters around.
Margot has a son, Claude, and is married to Jim, also a writer. As the two sisters meet, some of the old resentment suddenly appears to be a thing of the past. After all, this is a joyous occasion, even if it isn't Pauline's first marriage. As they catch up, Pauline tells her sister she is pregnant and asks her to keep the secret because she hasn't told Malcolm yet.
Unfortunately, Margot visit to her sister's is actually an excuse for getting together with the man she has been seeing, the pretentious Dick Koosman, who also happen to be a neighbor. To complicate things further, Margot tells Claude about his aunt's pregnancy. Claude, in turn, decides to reveal the secret to his cousin Ingrid, which infuriates Pauline. This is the last straw in the sisters' long hatred for one another. It is easy to see why, Margot, on the surface seems to have it all, but does she? Pauline, a woman without much to give has clung to Malcom as her last hope for happiness, but unfortunately, she too, is betrayed by her man.
Noah Baumbach's "Margot at the Wedding" is a difficult picture to sit through. We feel as though we have been invited to witness all the hidden emotions between two women who would be better off enjoying each other, yet, they are deeply flawed and can't get a grip on what is important and what is needed. Margot is forever writing things in her diary which later on appear in her highbrow pieces in The New Yorker, or Harper's, or some other intellectual publication.
Nicole Kidman's Margot is at times brilliant, as well as repulsive. She was given a plum role in which to appear; while one's reaction is one of disbelief in the way she acts toward Pauline, it is part of her makeup as a bitter woman. Jennifer Jason Leigh, one of the most mannered actresses of her generation, is actually a surprise in the film. It might be due to having her husband directing, and having been asked to tone her performance down. Jack Black, another annoying performer, does his best work in films as the idiotic Malcolm. John Turturro, Ciaran Hands, and the rest play as an ensemble.
While this film, which is obviously not for everyone, will displease some viewers, it has its merits in the way Mr. Baumbach moves his characters around.