Watching his films, you might get the impression that
director Noah Baumbach is a dyed in the wool pessimist. While movies like
“Greenberg,” “The Squid and the Whale,” and my personal favorite, the
underrated “Kicking and Screaming,” have sharp bitter edges, his latest,
“Frances Ha,” is his most hopeful, least combative work to date. The fact that
this is collaboration with star Greta Gerwig might have something to do with
that, and the events are largely autobiographical on her side of the equation.
