White Noise: A Review.

I want to preface this review by saying that I have not read the novel that this film is adapted from. So, this is a review of the film with zero understanding and relation to the Don Delillo novel. Personally, I believe that I would have liked it more if I had prior read the novel. There is a lot to unpack in this film, and Baumbach takes a massive swing with the themes and style found within this film. Some are home runs, others are strikeouts. Here is my review of Noah Baumbach's White Noise.

Before diving headfirst into the themes and messages of the film, I want to discuss the style of the film. White Noise swaps genre and style on a whim, as it needs, due to the different themes that the film explores. For example, the first 90-minutes of the film feel very Spielbergian. It was a fun romp that had clear influences from Spielberg blockbusters. However, this is utilized as a plot device to push our main character, Jack, further along on his emotional story that will eventually meet with his wife Babette's emotional arc.

There are at points where White Noise feels like a thriller, a horror, a satirical musical, it's everything, but with this, I feel like if you're not paying attention, important details can be missed, or it can be downright confusing. There is a theme switch half-way through the story as Jack has to come to terms with his mortality. It's the turning point in the style, as the film turns into a noir, detective film where Jack is trying to come to terms with his predicament.

Although some might hate how the film flips style and tone, I personally thought that it made the film feel unique, and that each style was well done. If Baumbach had given poor direction during the noir segments, or the early-story, I would be more harsh on this, but all styles are done well, so I think praise is deserved. Also, after doing research, I learned that the novel is also very similar in tone and style, and how it flips throughout, so I believe that Baumbach succeeds in adapting and staying true to the source material.

However, we now have to explore and talk about themes, which I think get muddled in the different styles. Also, every theme in this film is VERY on the nose. No subtlety here. The main overarching theme in the film is our relation with Death, our mortality. This is explored through Jack, who is afraid of dying, but it's not front and center in his mind. He teaches his college courses, he goes shopping, he lives everyday life, but this fear of death doesn't muddle his day.

This is the opposite of Babette. Unlike Jack, Babette is constantly afraid of dying, it consumes her everyday life. This is a major plot point when it is learned that she is taking an experimental medication to contain and suppress this fear, going as far as to even sell herself to get the medication. Essentially, this exploration is presenting the idea that there are two sides to meeting our mortality; living in constant fear and only focusing on not dying (hence the title of the film), or accepting our inevitable fate, and living life as best we can. It's a story of absolutes.

This idea isn't hit on the head until Jack is exposed to the giant toxic cloud when he is pumping gas. He is given a life expectancy of "15, or maybe even 30 years". Which is funny, because there is no guarantee he would even wake up tomorrow. All the event has done is make Jack aware of his expiration date. It's where the film takes a stylistic shift and gets much more serious with it's themes and opens up the topic of death.

Aside from the theme of mortality, there is also commentary on American Consumerism and American Higher-Education.

The critique of American Consumerism stems from the idea that by buying more things/having access to better things/shopping all the time/owning more things, is used as a form of escapism in American culture. i own more, I buy more, I have access to more, thus I am better than others and living a better life. For example, after the Toxic Cloud of Death situation has dissolved and everyone has gone back to living their lives', the one thing that is highlighted immediately is the brand new meat area of the grocery store that our characters spend quite a bit of time in. It's very on the nose.

The critique of American Higher-Education comes in the form of Jack's occupation, and the other professors around him. For example, Jack is the go-to in his field of Hitler Studies. He teaches at The-College-On-The-Hill, and often mingles and converses with his colleagues, who all have very niche and questionable studies. Essentially it is a comment and very harsh laugh at the study of the liberal arts in college, especially so in the United States.

College is a hot topic these days, especially so when it comes to the liberal arts. As a graduate with a political science degree, I couldn't agree more with the consensus that my liberal art degree is worthless in it's current state. Now, I am going to graduate school to become a professor and continue the historied pyramid scheme that is the political science major, but that's an article for another day.

Back to the point, the movie does a very good job of satirizing the liberal arts and the almost absurdity behind the fields of study that can essentially only exist within the realm of academia and have no actual real world application. The curse of the student loan is often self inflicted.

I like the theme that the film portrays, albeit muddled, is the idea of everyone being either a Jack or a Babette. One who is in constant fear of their mortality, or one who has accepted, or in the very least, doesn't worry about it. I am very much a Babette, but I think all, like most, would prefer to be a Jack.

To wrap this up, White Noise is much like it's own title; not the greatest film ever made, and not the worst. A entertaining film to put on and forget about the world for a while. It didn't waste my time, and I think it is worth a watch.

3.5/5