The Squid and the Whale

In the humid summer of 1986, a tight‑knit Brooklyn neighborhood feels the tremor of change when a once‑celebrated novelist and his increasingly successful writer wife announce their separation. The film opens on the home of Bernard, a once‑brilliant author whose career has dulled, and Joan, whose literary voice is finally being heard. Their impending split sets the stage for a delicate, bittersweet comedy‑drama that captures the texture of a city whose brownstones and parkways echo with both nostalgia and the promise of new beginnings.

At the centre of this familial upheaval are two brothers, each trying to make sense of the shifting terrain. Sixteen‑year‑old Walt looks to his father for identity, absorbing his intellectual world and, at times, his cynicism. Twelve‑year‑old Frank leans toward his mother, drawn to her emerging confidence and creative spark. The brothers’ divergent loyalties create a quiet tension that mirrors the broader cultural pulse of 1980s Brooklyn—a place where ambition, art, and everyday survival intersect on the streets lined with graffiti and the scent of pizza ovens.

The tone balances wry humor with raw emotional honesty, framing the divorce not just as a legal split but as a catalyst for the characters to confront their own aspirations and insecurities. Bernard and Joan navigate their own artistic frustrations while trying to parent through a landscape that feels both familiar and suddenly alien. Their differing approaches to writing and life become metaphors for how each family member grapples with change, offering moments of both levity and poignancy.

Against this backdrop, the boys’ journey toward self‑discovery is punctuated by everyday scenes—a talent show, school hallway chatter, late‑night conversations—that hint at larger questions of identity, belonging, and the fragile ties that bind a family together. The film invites viewers to linger in the messy, tender space between childhood innocence and the stark realities of adulthood, promising an intimate portrait of a family in transition without revealing the specifics of what lies ahead.

Last Updated: August 10, 2025 at 10:19