Believe it or not, we've seen films like this one before. Maybe not with the same detail, but about the same general subject; a messed up family that deals with their problems in a direction and script without inhibitions. We could say that "The Squid and the Whale" has a few less inhibitions than the normal level, no Joaquín? <br /><br />With a big dose of reality included, the Berkmans have to live with parents Frank (Jeff Daniels) and Joan (Laura Linney) getting divorced. At first, it seems that they just don't love each other anymore; later, new facts come to light in front of their sons' Walt (Jesse Eisenberg) and Frank (Owen Kline) eyes. This leads to a huge amount of craziness and an apparently uncertain conclusion.<br /><br />In the line of writer/director films as "The Door in the Floor" and "Igby Goes Down", the picture doesn't really last too long and the secret of the camera lies in the observation. Here, we don't experience a piece full of camera tricks and innovating shots, but we're not expecting that either. We instantly realize there's a story being told and in order for us to pay attention, everything has to move slowly.<br /><br />Take a look at the performances…Jeff Daniels, as disinterested as usual in a role that fits him perfectly; walks calmly through the development of the story, only raising his voice and getting angry two or three times. And so it occurs with all the characters: Laura Linney is marvelous in the difficult role she gets to play, but rage gets into her twice; Jesse Eisenberg (from the underrated "Roger Dodger") has one very strong scene of shouting, while he sadly looks lost for the rest of the movie, accurately portraying the complex Walt.<br /><br />In Owen Kline we find a natural talent for an obscure performance that would make his father Kevin proud. And we also get the presence of the beautiful Anna Paquin, who plays a really 'racy' character and completes a very 'racy' scene with a high level of mastery. I have also wanted her to do more things than she actually does. William Baldwin is the last and probably the calmer man within the cast, playing the philistine Ivan, a tennis professor that becomes Frank's role model.<br /><br />The technical work is among the calm also…Specially Tim Streeto's edition, who has been assistant editor in various films of this type ("Black and White", "American Splendor"). Finally, Noah Baumbach is a man we can expect a lot from. The trick of the observation in the camera is automatically connected to his peculiar but fantastic screenplay that, as I said, contains a lot of detail which can become creepy; but with great expertise and timing.<br /><br />We could easily say that Baumbach's script is a storm, because it puts its characters in the middle of one, but we can also say that Baumbach is a man who definitely tries to find the calm between the storm, in his characters and in his movie. See the reference of the title of the movie in the story and you'll get it: a clarified example about finding the calm between the storm (no Urdinez?).