The Squid and the Whale

Plot

Bernard Berkman is an arrogant, once-promising novelist whose career has gone into a slow decline as he spends more time teaching and less time writing. His unfaithful wife, Joan, has recently begun publishing her own work to widespread acclaim, which only increases the growing tension between them. One day, Bernard and Joan tell their two sons, 16-year-old Walt and 12-year-old Frank, that they are separating, with Bernard renting a house on the other side of Prospect Park from their home in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

As the parents set up a schedule for spending time with their children, Walt and Frank can hardly imagine that things could get more combative between their parents. They do, however, as Joan begins dating Ivan, Frank's tennis instructor, and Bernard starts sharing his new house with Lili, one of his students. Meanwhile, the two boys begin taking sides in the battle between their parents, with Frank siding with his mother and Walt lashing out at her.

Along with the trouble both boys exhibit verbally with their parents, they also show internal struggles and very different ways of handling the stress of their parents' divorce. Walt's most obvious cry for help is when he performs and claims to have written "Hey You" by Pink Floyd at his school's talent show. After Walt wins first place and receives praise from his family and friends, his school realizes that he did not write the song. At this point, the school calls Bernard and Joan in to discuss Walt. They all decide that Walt should see the school psychologist. Meanwhile, Frank exhibits his own internal turmoil by repeatedly masturbating at school. He also begins to drink beer and speak in a way that emulates Ivan's mannerisms.

During the meeting with the psychologist, Walt finally starts to see things more objectively, without the taint of his father's opinions. He realizes that he had been emulating Bernard's rude and arrogant behavior when he mistreats a girl he had been dating named Sophie, who breaks things off with him when she finally gets fed up with his narcissism and cruel treatment of her. The psychologist asks Walt about his childhood memories and it becomes clear to Walt that his father was never really present, and that his mother was the one whom he remembers caring for him. His fondest childhood memory is when his mother would take him to see the giant squid and whale exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History; the exhibit scared him as a small child so he would look at it through his fingers whenever they went by the exhibit at the museum.

After a heated argument between Bernard and Joan over custody, Bernard collapses on the street outside their home and is taken to the hospital. Bernard asks for Walt to stay by his side, but Walt instead runs to visit the squid and whale. The film concludes with him pondering the exhibit.

Cast

Bill Murray, a frequent collaborator to producer Wes Anderson, was considered for the role of Bernard Berkman.

Reception

The Squid and the Whale was met with widespread acclaim from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 93% "Certified Fresh" rating, based on 141 reviews, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "This is a piercingly honest, acidly witty look at divorce and its impact on a family". On Metacritic, the film has an 82 out of 100, based on 37 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". On an episode of Ebert & Roeper, both critics praised the film and gave it a "two thumbs up" rating. Premiere critic Glenn Kenny praised the film, writing, "It's a rare film that can be convincingly tender, bitterly funny, and ruthlessly cutting over the course of fewer than 90 minutes. The Squid and the Whale not only manages this, it also contains moments that sock you with all three qualities at the same time." Time critic Richard Corliss wrote, "The Squid and the Whale is domestic tragedy recollected as comedy: a film whose catalog of deceits and embarrassments, and of love pratfalling over itself, makes it as (excruciatingly) painful as it is (exhilaratingly) funny." The English Indie folk band Noah and the Whale takes its name from a combination of the director's name (Noah Baumbach) and the film's title.

Awards and nominations

Home media

The film was released on DVD on March 21, 2006 by Sony Pictures. The DVD includes a 45-minute commentary with director Noah Baumbach, another 40-minute commentary with Baumbach and Phillip Lopate, cast interviews, and trailers. In 2013 Mill Creek Entertainment released the film for the first time on Blu-ray in a 2 pack set with "Running With Scissors". All extras were dropped for the Blu-ray release.

The Criterion Collection announced that it would release The Squid and The Whale on November 22nd, 2016 that would include new interviews with Baumbach and actors Jeff Daniels, Jesse Eisenberg, Owen Kline and Laura Linney; A new conversation about the score and other music in the film between Baumbach and composers Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips; A 2005 documentary titled Behind “The Squid and the Whale”; Audition footage and the original trailers.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack features two songs by Loudon Wainwright III and one by Kate & Anna McGarrigle. It reuses Tangerine Dream's "The Dream is Always the Same", from Risky Business, for the scenes of Frank's sexual awakenings. Other contemporary popular music is played in the background of scenes, such as The Cars' "Drive" and Bryan Adams' "Run to You". "Figure Eight", from Schoolhouse Rock, is used as both an instrumental and a vocal. Pink Floyd's "Hey You" is heard several times in the movie, since it plays a role in the plot and is cited by Walt as capturing his emotional state. Both the original version, and diegetic performances by Jesse Eisenberg and Owen Kline, are used. Baumbach originally wanted to use The Who's "Behind Blue Eyes" instead but he could not secure the rights.

1. "Park Slope" – Britta Phillips & Dean Wareham
2. "Courting Blues" – Bert Jansch
3. "Holland Tunnel" – John Phillips
4. "Lullaby" – Loudon Wainwright III
5. "Heart Like a Wheel" – Kate & Anna McGarrigle
6. "The Bright New Year" – Bert Jansch
7. "Drive" – The Cars
8. "Let's Go" – The Feelies
9. "Figure Eight" – Blossom Dearie
10. "Come Sing Me a Happy Song to Prove We All Can Get Along the Lumpy, Bumpy, Long & Dusty Road" – Bert Jansch
11. "Hey You " – Pink Floyd (Performed by Dean Wareham)
12. "Family Conference" – Britta Phillips & Dean Wareham
13. "Street Hassle" – Lou Reed
14. "The Swimming Song" – Loudon Wainwright III
15. "Love on a Real Train" – Tangerine Dream