The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)

The spirit of vintage Woody Allen suffuses this staccato tale that dips into scenes from the life of a dysfunctional New York family. Dustin Hoffman stars as Harold Meyerowitz, a bohemian artist whose abstract sculptures have the respect of his immediate peers but not the wider world. Harold's frustration rubs off on his kids, who couldn't be more different: the assured, careerist Matthew (Ben Stiller), the shambolic musician Danny (Adam Sandler, not doing his shrill, goofy man-child act for a change) and the underachieving office worker Jean (Elizabeth Marvel). Family tensions come to boiling point when Harold suffers a serious and potentially life-threatening head injury. Witty barbs are traded in a melancholy comedy drama that largely consists of sibling rivalry and a lot of sophisticated bickering. A terrific cast, which also includes Emma Thompson as Harold's fourth and current wife, adds needed warmth to the slightly chilly, Bergman-esque histrionics.