Welcome back to the blog. I just got finished watching the Netflix film White Noise, based off the 1985 book by Don DeLillo, directed by Noah Baumbach, and starring Adam Driver, Greta Gerwig, and Don Cheadle. and I briefly wanted to share my spoiler-free thoughts. Set in the early 1980s, it follows a scholar and his family as their world is turned upside down when an air pollution accident affects their town.
To be completely honest with you readers, I truly have no idea what to think about this film. So I want to try to develop these thoughts with you here. I will start off by listing off what I think are the positives and then I will switch to the negatives.
The first thing that I will commend is the leads: Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig, who play a married couple with five children. I love Driver as an actor; he was phenomenal in Baumbach's 2019 masterpiece Marriage Story. I also found myself glued to the screen whenever he was on it. He damn deserved that Golden Globe nomination. I only know Gerwig as a director (Lady Bird, 2020's awesome Little Women, and the upcoming Barbie) but I found her performance just as fresh and dynamic as Driver's.
"Family is the cradle of the world's misinformation" is a phrase that is found in the book apparently and repeated throughout the film; and the film depicts this chaotic family very well. I loved the dynamic between the family. It came off as dysfunctional but held together by something unexplainable. I also very much appreciated the message that it is okay to be afraid of dying, as it is a natural fear. One that I very much have.
Now something I appreciated but I know most people may not is the writing. Since Marriage Story, I have gravitated towards Baumbach's films mainly because of the writing. His exceptional writing is on display yet again, and I am bummed it did not get an Adapted Screenplay nod at the Oscars. However, I can see how some people would not get or understand the writing. Maybe because it can be considered too classical; but to me, good writing is good writing.
Now I want to talk about some things I don't like about the film. This one pains me to talk about, but it's Don Cheadle's character. Now before you get on me, I love Don Cheadle. He is a great actor and he deserves his roses. With that being said, I do like his character; he comes off as someone who clearly has something to say. But I don't see why his character needs to be there. He is an intriguing character but his presence is pointless, as his existence does not affect the plot at all.
Another major issue I have with the film is its pacing. I will tie in pacing with runtime because the two do not match at all. At times the film does drag a bit, and it shows. The film tries to tell about 3 books-worth of material in a runtime of 2:16 and it feels chaotic at times. Chopping the runtime down about 25 minutes and polishing and smoothing out the pacing would have done this film a bit more justice in the end.
To conclude my thoughts, I would attempt to say that White Noise is a brilliantly acted but poorly paced mess that tries to be more than it actually winds up being. Thank you for reading, and I hope that you can join me for the next one.
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