Greenberg

I had a hard time with Greenberg. The whole movie just made me tense, uncomfortable really. Of course, there were some hilarious moments, but they didn't have so much of a comic relief effect as in Baumbach's previous films, such as The Squid and the Whale. I feel that the answer to my little dilemma is that Roger Greenberg (Ben Stiller) hits too close home. He feels like he is part of my family, or worse, part of me.

Initially, its easy to point out that he is a selfish, socially-awkward, jerk. Yet, our impulse to push this guy away is just as strong as it is to reach out to him. That uneasiness--that tension between resisting and accepting--is the essence of Greenberg. If anything, we just want to understand the man that that is so hurt, he can't help but lash out and hurt others around him.
Maybe, it is because Roger is dead-on with some of his social commentary that we can't simply banish him. For example, who doesn't complaint about Airline service, or obnoxious people at restaurants.

Our complaint about Roger is that he just can't let it slide. He has to address every wrong that be-fronts him. So, he writes out, and then types letters to companies he finds issue with; but, he also insults and puts people down, right to their face. Some of his behavior is constructive, some of it pointless, some of it mean, and some of it insane. This degree of criticism and could render someone crazy, and thats what it did to Roger (he was briefly institutionalized) just previous to him coming out to California to house-sit for his brother.
The biggest problem with Greenberg is that his behavior is destroying meaningful relationships all around him. He doesn't allow others to have flaws, although he himself has many. It is more important to call someone out, indeed brutally, than to let one slide in order to maintain relationships with people he really cares about. He can't stop alienating others or sabotaging himself.

The conclusion was masterfully thought-out and well-done for someone on only his fifth film. The films abrupt ending is a reflection of the sudden change in Roger himself: he is done with such relentless, harmful, open criticism. Greenberg is about halting, in order to move ahead. Maybe there's no one epiphany, or apparent break-through for Roger Greenberg, but its clear at the film's ending that there's no going back. Isn't that how life usually is? It looks like even the most neurotic and intolerable amongst us can change.