Was I supposed to hate him? Because I did.
There's no way a girl would give you that many chances either. He treated her like dirt.
So yeah, very frustrating character and ultimately a frustrating film.
He divides opinions. Personally i thought he ruled, i loved this movie so much.
But about Florence, i know many girls who stick around with guys who treat them far worse than Roger treated her & he did sort of come good in the end for her.
Op, you may be forgetting that he just got out of a mental hospital, the guy was supposed to be cracked, that's why he acted the way he did.
share[deleted]
What you describe as a boring jerk is exactly what his mental illness is. He was so insecure and paranoid and alienated that it made him a mental case, it doesn't excuse his behavior but it does explain it. Yes, a lot of people act like him who are not mentally ill. Also, a lot of people think mental illness is a weakness, not an illness, and you are only (seriously) mentally ill when you rock back and forth in front of a window in a semi catatonic state.
share[deleted]
I thought Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer's Henry was way more unlikeable main character than Greenberg. Compared to him I though Greenberg was also a decent boyfriend.
----
My top 50 favorite TV shows: http://www.imdb.com/list/htCI2Le9KJo/
Crap character. Crap movie.
shareMost unlikeable main character ever? Guess the OP has never seen Tony Curtis in The Boston Strangler.
shareI have to agree that this character was pure torture to watch but not in any sort of edifying or droll way. Most of Baumbach's characters tend to be neurotic and prominently unflattering and flawed though with still some bit of winsome humanity to make you care (and most uncomfortably but importantly, relate) on some level. Greenberg was without any redemptive qualities, plus he was physically atrocious to look at. The fact Greta Gerwig was paying any attention to him at all after his treatment of her made the whole thing seem like a straight male fantasy in which you can be dull, cruel, idle, and physically ugly and still have a cute young thing chasing after you.
shareyou can be dull, cruel, idle, and physically ugly and still have a cute young thing chasing after you
At least Greenberg is supposed to be unlikeable. Florence, who I found to be painfully annoying, was supposed to her "adorable" which made her all the more irritating.
"What are you doing?
"You're my future wife, what are you doing Lisa?"
At least Greenberg is supposed to be unlikeable. Florence, who I found to be painfully annoying, was supposed to her "adorable" which made her all the more irritating.I felt sympathy for Greenberg in the early stages of the film, but as it progressed I found myself losing patience with him. He tended to remind me of a very unfunny Woody Allen. Florence I found very appealing and a far more interesting character ultimately than Greenberg. He didn't deserve her. share
Women like Gerwig's character do indeed exist just as surely as characters like Greenberg exist. You often find them in pairs, in fact: people utterly unable to compose a sense of themselves with people whose sense of themselves is hyper-inflated.
shareIt's called an anti-hero, I would try taking a step back before rejecting something that you don't understand.
shareIt's called an anti-hero, I would try taking a step back before rejecting something that you don't understand.
Oh I thought this movie was reality, thanks for clearing that up.
shareI do believe you were meant to hate him. I know I hated him. Loved the movie, though.
sharei wish i hated him, then the boring piece of crap would be at least interesting. but he's no a character, he's just one of the 7 billion crappy meaningless people on earth.
shareHe was truly toxic. I am a psychologist and you couldn't pay me enough money even to take him on as a client, let alone on a personal level.
shareHere is a worse character for you: Kym Buchman (Anne Hathaway) in "Rachel Getting Married".
He character is nastier than Roger Greenberg ever was. Moreover, at the end of the movie Greenberg, we see that Roger is finally getting over his past hurts, his anxieties and his neurosis, and growing up.
We really never get that with Kym Buchman.