The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) (2017)

The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) is one of those rare films that can make you laugh at the exact moment it quietly breaks your heart, capturing the messy, maddening intimacy of family with a novelist’s precision. Noah Baumbach turns a New York reunion into a sharply observed chamber piece, where every interruption, old grievance, and half-finished compliment feels lived-in rather than scripted. The ensemble is terrific, and Adam Sandler in particular gives a performance of disarming sincerity, finding deep feeling in the small, awkward spaces between jokes. If you prefer big plot turns and tidy catharsis, this may feel too conversational and raw, but if you’ve ever loved people who drive you crazy, it’s a compulsively watchable, deeply human comedy-drama.

The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) is aiming for a messy, lived-in portrait of family resentment and love, the kind where tiny slights and old wounds do all the heavy lifting instead of big plot beats. If you need a clear story arc, likable characters, or a satisfying payoff, this can feel aimless, abstract, and frankly dull as it circles the same emotional territory without much forward momentum. The characters are intentionally prickly and self-absorbed, which may read as “weak” rather than complex if you’re not already on board with that style of realism. That said, if you enjoy talky New York family dramas with sharp observations and strong acting, there are moments of humor and truth that land—even if the movie never fully pulls itself together.