Liberal Arts

I liked this warm hearted and intelligent comedy, written and directed by Josh Radnor, a lot more than his first film "Happythankyoumoreplease'.

Radnor also stars in the movie as Jesse Fisher, a 35 year old well read nice guy working as an admissions interviewer at a New York City college. He receives a call from his favorite former college professor, portrayed by the skilled veteran actor Richard Jenkins. Jenkins asks him if he can come to Ohio to attend his retirement party at his university, where he's stepping down after 37 years of teaching.

Radnor accepts and while there meets Zibby, played by the superbly talented Elizabeth Olsen. She's 19 years old and a student there, as well as the daughter of friends of Jenkins. They're attracted to each other but Radnor hesitates at starting a relationship with her due to the age difference.

Subsequently, what happens between them takes some unexpected twists and turns. I'll leave that to the viewer to see what happens.

There are some wonderful supporting performances as well. Allison Janney is a hoot as a jaded imperious former English Romantics professor of Radnor's. Zac Efron, in a small but important role, plays a Zen-like philosopher who proffers up some interesting advice. Plus, Elizabeth Reaser adds well to the mix as a bookstore employee who may be a potential love interest for Radnor.

All in all, not everything works in the film, sometimes going off the rails, but overall I enjoyed this quirky, intelligent comedy whose genre seems to be getting rarer and rarer in today's films.

I see this movie as a look at life through the perspectives of different generations. Aging may bring wisdom, (well, at least to some) but it also brings a whole new array of problems; problems that cannot be understood by those outside of a highly specific age range. There may be some communication between generations. We can learn from both those who have gone before us and those younger than us, but this learning is more at the intellectual than emotional level. Thirty-five-year-old Jesse (Josh Radnor) is introduced to classical music by 19-year-old Zibby (Elizabeth Olsen) but their perspectives on life challenge their chances to unite in a more personal way.

The film, in some ways, is like the Canterbury Tales (which is mentioned in the movie), only instead of traveling to a city while relating different tales, the characters are traveling through life with different perspectives. We have youthful optimism and idealism, age with its cynicism and bitterness, and middle-age with its realism. There are also perspectives from mysticism and despair. This is more of a psychological movie than an action movie. Although I never lost interest in the story, I am well-aware that this is not what most younger moviegoers are looking for and it is they who will be disappointed in this film. So be it. When today's hottest action films are replaced by those which have better special effects, films like Liberal Arts will endure because they will stand on their own merits, outside of time.

I found the acting good and the screenplay excellent. The interaction between the characters was believable. I cannot imagine anyone other than the writer, Josh Radnor, playing the main role. He plays the part of a man trapped by middle-aged angst to perfection. However, this is not simply a dry intellectual drama. There is a good deal of humor, some great lines, but it is humor that is witty more than physical.

As a classical music fan myself, I liked seeing Jesse discover this genre. I also liked the scene where Jesse tries to bridge the generation gap mathematically, but I can't say more about that here. In short, this is an enjoyable movie, but those looking for goofball comedies or bloody fight scenes should go onto something else. Don't worry. This film will still be around for you to discover when you are ready for it.

These days it is very rare to find a well rounded film with a good moral. While Josh Radnor is know for his raunchy sitcom "How I Met Your Mother," he has many hidden talents that the show does not utilize. As a writer, director, and actor he is superb, and he brings a refreshing change of pace to not only the drama industry, but the film industry in general. From the opening sequence to the credits the film is thoroughly entertaining, and intelligent. Elizabeth Olsen was enthusiastic and energetic, just as Zibby should have been portrayed. Zac Efron was surprisingly humorous, and his slightly off-key character adds a certain lightness to such a dramatic film. Every cast member was perfectly cast, the script is humor, entertaining, and charming. The most astonishing aspect of the film was the use of a classical soundtrack, a general push toward fine arts, great classic literature references, and the idea presented that love and music join us all together. No matter what your particular tastes in film in I urge you to take the time and watch 'Liberal Arts,' you will not be sorry.

A very watchable independent rom-com that delves deeper than the usual Hollywood studio version. A film about maturity and growing up and the beauty of words and music.

I particularly liked the intelligence and wit of the script, the use of Classical music and what it can do to you and the highlighting of the difference in location from bustling grey New York to the beautiful quiet greenery of Ohio.

I did find that the main character, written, directed and portrayed by Josh Radnor was too perfect. He was intelligent, sensitive, funny, moralistic and empathetic all rolled up in this cute little package. However, if he had not written it for himself it may not have annoyed me as much. I also found Olsen as the wise beyond her years 19 year old to be rather annoying at certain points, but take out those slightly annoying characteristics, some predictable elements and a pretty awful sub-plot involving Zac Efron and the screenplays words and meaning are too enjoyable to let those things spoil it for you.

Oh and Allison Janney and Richard Jenkins steal every scene they are in.

"nobody thinks they're adult, it's the worlds darkest secret" or words to that affect...

I am not the type of guy who would watch this movie. In fact, I don't even really know why I did. It was just a tough day and I didn't want to watch a movie that was in the triple digit minutes, so I went with this one. Usually I watch action movies, or political dramas. I don't like to read books or romantic movies, even less I like Arts, hence there is nothing that would make me appreciate it, I thought. But I was wrong. This movie is surprisingly great. I caught myself laughing and thinking about life. It was just a beautiful piece of art. A piece of art even I appreciate. On top I never write reviews, but this was just extraordinary.