After you've seen his last film, The Squid and the Whale, you have to wonder what in the hell Noah Baumbach was thinking when he wrote and directed Margot at the Wedding.
"The Whale" with it's quirky but lovable if not frustrating characters is funny and interesting study of the dysfunctional family. This film with it's all star cast is just the opposite.
I couldn't identify with or like any of these people.
Nicole Kidman, playing the title role, is caustic and manipulative as the sister who comes home to save her sister from marrying a man, she judges is the kind of guy they rejected in high school. Jennifer Jason Leigh, playing the to-be-wed Pauline is happy and resolved to marry a guy she loves, but realizes is not up to her sisters standard. What becomes apparent is that there are other reasons for Margot's objections and those are at the heart of what is wrong with this film.
Baumbach's script swings back and forth between the arguments Margot puts forth why Pauline shouldn't marry Malcom, played by Jack Black. and their past family relationship.
It became apparent that the past loomed much larger than the present but we never get to see these issues examined. Hints about issues with a sister and mother who show up late in the film in an Hitchcock type appearance that you have to know about to witness are never fleshed out nor explained.
Forget the production values that are below what a teenager can do with a cheap video camera. Muddy dark interiors, washed out exteriors and unbearable sound track are an insult to the talent assembled to make this film. I for one thought the actors did a lot with very little and I'm sure they were disappointed with the result.
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