The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) review

Written and directed by Noah Baumbach
Distributor: Netflix
Runtime: 112 minutes
My rating: 3.5/4

Noah Baumbach is one of my favorite filmmakers, especially when he works with Greta Gerwig and Ben Stiller. This film, along with Okja, gained controversy at Cannes this year since they were being distributed by Netflix. Reportedly, both films got boos and standing ovations.

The film explores the relationships two sons (Stiller and Adam Sandler) have with their father, Harold (Dustin Hoffman). As Danny (Sandler) is seeing his daughter off to college, he and his wife divorce, leading him to move in with his dad. He’s been a stay-at-home dad for the past 18 years and has no real work experience. His daughter is an aspiring filmmaker.

Matthew (Stiller) has seen much success in his life, now living in LA with his family. He tries to visit NYC as much as possible to visit his dad, even though Harold drives him crazy.

Baumbach is a master at dramedy, as the humor and sadness is very evenly handed. The only criticism I give in this case is leaning too heavily on Sandler. I feel like the film would have been more successful if the siblings were a little more even. But this is certainly above par for a Netflix film, and so I still highly recommend it.