Kicking and Screaming (1995)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Dan S

  
  A very opinionated by empty and aimless bore concerning recent college graduates struggling to find their place in the world, and how their lives change over the course of a few months. Noah Baumbach, one of the kings of awkward/anti-social world, has put together a below average… More
  A very opinionated by empty and aimless bore concerning recent college graduates struggling to find their place in the world, and how their lives change over the course of a few months. Noah Baumbach, one of the kings of awkward/anti-social world, has put together a below average "comedy" that is not very funny, with characters that are not very likable, and with a plot that has no problem being about nothing. Unlike "The Squid and the Whale" which had a pretty good sense of humor despite taking itself a little too seriously, the biggest thing with this film is that it is just flat-out not funny or meaningful. I could not care less about the selfish, quirky for quirks sake characters that spouted dialogue that seemed from another planet, and as a result this movie lost me quickly. It is not terrible, it just is not very good.

• Graham J

  
  The very underrated hilarious debut from Noah Baumkbach has perhaps the most qoutable lines of any movie I've seen and features great performances from Christopher Eigeman, Carlos Jacott and a supporting role from Elliot Gould.

• Spencer S

  
  For what's it worth, I truly believe in Gen X comedy-dramas. Even if you didn't fully enjoy this period in history, the quirky characters and realistic underlying problems of these films' central protagonists are shockingly familiar. Whether Eliot's "The Love… More
  For what's it worth, I truly believe in Gen X comedy-dramas. Even if you didn't fully enjoy this period in history, the quirky characters and realistic underlying problems of these films' central protagonists are shockingly familiar. Whether Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" or James Joyce's "The Dead" every art form has beleaguered to show us that our futures, more likely our destinies, are under our own control and not that of extenuating circumstances. We all fear failure in the future, but Baumbach also delves into the psyches of several different archetypes, including: the infinite student, wanting to learn but lacking direction, the genius who works blue collar because he fears success, and the slacker who still slacks though staying in school so he doesn't have to face life. This film is one big denial trip down a memory lane no one wants to know or live through. Each of the main character's relationships are these hypereducated rants to one another over who can be more of a hipster chic intellectual, who can obsess over the idiosyncrasies and affectations of an entire generation of hypochondriacs and windbags, quite frankly. The film makes fun of itself often, and points out the flaws of the college elite, when the entire culmination of our hard earned education is wasted on people who lack direction, who serve themselves with things, and people, and ideas they don't need, lying about without hope or purpose. Some may not revel in the true entertainment of eccentricities, but the droll humor and actual message are worth the short watch.

• Jennifer X

  
  I really dig the subtlety of this movie, and how the ending was so seamlessly incorporated. Although sometimes the lines didn't ring honest, I can identify these feelings of ambiguous futures very potently. Baumbach made a very earnest film, and I appreciate that.

• Curtis L

  
  A lot of it was obnoxious, but it had spurts of good moments. Subtle humor is used well in places. A typical 2.5 star movie; see it or don't, it's not going to matter either way.

• Steve B

  
  "What I used to be able to pass off as just a bad summer, could now potentially turn into a bad life."

• Michael G

  
  Kind of dark, and not too engaging, but its good.

• Chihoe H

  
  In a film that revolves around a group of friends, all recent college graduates, "Kicking and Screaming" starts off in a way that reflects the uncertainty the characters face about their futures - confusing and unknowing in which direction it was heading in. It eventually… More
  In a film that revolves around a group of friends, all recent college graduates, "Kicking and Screaming" starts off in a way that reflects the uncertainty the characters face about their futures - confusing and unknowing in which direction it was heading in. It eventually falls into place with a nice pacing and snarky, quotable dialogue. Not much happens other than slacking, whining, and overanalyzing from the group, but it is the hilarious and insightful conversations that make it a decent first feature from Noah Baumbach.

• Alec B

  
  NOT WILL FERRELL SOCCER MOVIE! This film, by Noah Baumbach is about people that can never leave college and are experiencing a quarter life crisis as it were. I like how all the main characters all act like they know it all, but it's obvious they don't have a clue. It's… More
  NOT WILL FERRELL SOCCER MOVIE! This film, by Noah Baumbach is about people that can never leave college and are experiencing a quarter life crisis as it were. I like how all the main characters all act like they know it all, but it's obvious they don't have a clue. It's definitely not as good as The Squid and the Whale, but for a first film it's rather well written. The "Oh . . . I've been to Prague" line and so many other lines in this film are hilarious in their utter pretension that these people all seem to have, but don't deserve.

• t h o m !

  
  I've always known of Baumbach through Wes Anderson, watching their interviews and collaborations on Anderson's films. For the most part, he seemed like Anderson Lite, which in itself isn't a knock on him; it still holds him in a higher than most position. Further… More
  I've always known of Baumbach through Wes Anderson, watching their interviews and collaborations on Anderson's films. For the most part, he seemed like Anderson Lite, which in itself isn't a knock on him; it still holds him in a higher than most position. Further insight into him may label him as an, I don't know, Kevin Smith Lite, this being the similar dialogue driven simplicity to which this film expresses. I've put this film off for awhile, just always forgetting about it, so come time to view, I must say; I was a little disappointed. Maybe I was expecting too much, too much hype all around. It wasn't that it was a bad film; I can see what he means when he says he was pretty basic with his first, not having his style nailed down. Maybe it's my fault for going back, adjusting to who he is now and then witnessing the lack thereof; like I should have started from the beginning and gone forward. But you could argue good films are interchangeable through time and all that. There were a lot of stale moments but I will admit that the story itself was greater than the vibe it gave. Clinging onto the words of the film for entertainment gave way for much appreciation, whenever something did happen on screen, such as all the sex that goes, erm, hand in hand with college. What Baumbach did wonderfully tho that I did like was his use of the still imagery dissolve with the flashback sequences. Those were very nice and were very pleasing, in combination with that bit of score. Those scenes alone saved the film from being lackluster, imo. You really do get a feel of one reflecting onto one's memories; as if viewing a completely life entirely, feeling a sense of somberness but also bittersweet happiness that goes along with remembrance. It was also fun seeing his little cameos. I just wish I watched it before I decided to go out and buy the Criterion...

• Quinto W

  
  The way the characters move and talk reminds me of actual human beings who exist, everything helped by great performances and fast, witty dialogue. I'm only disappointed by the huge lack of Parker Posey in ths movie.

• Laurence C

  
  Despite a handful of enjoyably quotable lines and downright honest intentions, Noah Baumbach's feature film debut is ultimately only sporadically engaging. The first ten minutes are, in that sense, very testing in the way that it's chock-full of first-time screenwriter… More
  Despite a handful of enjoyably quotable lines and downright honest intentions, Noah Baumbach's feature film debut is ultimately only sporadically engaging. The first ten minutes are, in that sense, very testing in the way that it's chock-full of first-time screenwriter ''dialogue'' where everyone spouts instantly clever remarks without having any actual believable conversation going on. Thankfully, that pedal is given a less aggressive push throughout the movie, but the overall feel remains the same. The characters are somewhat thin, but their anxieties ring truthfully; the actors portraying them almost all have a nice, unforced authenticity to their line-readings, but they cannot run away from being stuck in endless variations of the same scene. I'm glad Baumbach followed this twee, aimless little dramedy with the largely superior & focused one-two punch of The Squid and the Whale and Margot at the Wedding. Kicking and Screaming is not a bad movie per se, and it does get a couple of genuinely funny moments that very much call for a rewind-rewatch, but it's not interesting enough to recommend it to anyone else than curious Baumbach admirers.

• Sunil J

  
  The first movie from the writer/director of the Squid and the Whale puts together a nice enough script with mediocre characters.

• Leo L

  
  Hilarious!

• Tom S

  
  "What I used to be able to pass off as a bad summer could now potentially turn into a bad life." It might be because I feel that way at this point in my life that I liked this movie so much. It might also be that it's a great movie.

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