Movie · 2005 · Comedy, Drama · 1h 21m · R · English
Curator score: 7.1/10 (240.7K ratings)
Joint custody blows.
Overview
Based on the true childhood experiences of Noah Baumbach and his brother, The Squid and the Whale tells the touching story of two young boys dealing with their parents' divorce in Brooklyn in the 1980s.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.1/10
IMDb: 7.3/10
Letterboxd: 3.70/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 91%
Metacritic: 82
TMDB: 7.0/10
Director
Noah Baumbach
Production
Original Media, American Empirical Pictures, Peter Newman/Interal, Ambush Entertainment, Taurus Film, Andrew Lauren Productions
Cast
Jeff Daniels, Laura Linney, Jesse Eisenberg, Owen Kline, William Baldwin, Halley Feiffer, Anna Paquin, David Benger, Molly Barton, Bo Berkman, Matthew Kaplan, Simon Kaplan, Matthew Kirsch, Daniella Markowicz, Elizabeth Meriwether, Ben Schrank, Amy Srebnick, Josh Srebnick, Emma Straub, Alan Wilkis
Where to watch
Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A sharp, painful, and darkly funny divorce drama that turns family collapse into a precise study of ego, imitation, and emotional damage. It’s especially rewarding if you like literate, character-driven films that are uncomfortable on purpose.
Best for
viewers who like acerbic family dramas
fans of awkward, dialogue-heavy indie comedies
people interested in divorce stories told from a child’s perspective
audiences who enjoy emotionally honest but unsentimental filmmaking
Skip if
you need likable characters
you prefer plot-driven stories
you dislike cringe humor or emotional cruelty
you want a warm or cathartic family movie
Overview
The Squid and the Whale is one of those films that feels almost clinically observant about how a family can fracture while everyone still thinks they’re the smartest person in the room. Noah Baumbach stages the divorce not as melodrama but as a slow leak of resentment, vanity, and self-justification, with Brooklyn in the 1980s serving as a perfectly airless backdrop.
Worth noting
What makes it endure is the balance of wit and discomfort. The jokes land because the characters are so wounded, defensive, and ridiculous; the film never asks you to admire them, only to recognize them. Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney are excellent, but the movie’s real sting comes from how the boys absorb and repeat the damage around them.
Bottom line
It’s not an easy watch, and that’s the point. If you respond to films that are emotionally exact, morally messy, and quietly devastating, this is a strong recommendation. If you need warmth, redemption, or a clean point of view, it may feel more punishing than pleasurable.
Top Letterboxd reviews
tru (5★) · 6837 likes
how has the entire fucking school never listened to pink floyd
Laura (4.5★) · 3043 likes
evidence that it only takes one therapy session for a pretentious teenage boy to stop idolizing their father
demi adejuyigbe · 2774 likes
It’s funny every single time Billy Baldwin says “brother.” Every time.
Karsten (3.5★) · 2773 likes
I'm gonna come clean, this is a super unlikeable film. Its characters are pretentious and unredeemable past the point of feeling any empathy, the soundtrack sounds exactly how you'd expect it to sound based off the poster, Jesse Eisenberg is in it...I mean, come on. It feels static but the underlying anger and toxicity of the situation is simultaneously always building till it reaches a point where it needs to come out. It feels real in a different way than what I'm used to. It's honest and it's different, I just wish I felt anything about it.