Kicking and Screaming

R

Released Oct 4, 1995

1 hr. 36 min.

Comedy

Drama

List

57%

37 Reviews

Tomatometer

75%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Preppie graduates (Josh Hamilton, Olivia d'Abo, Carlos Jacott) face their first year out of college and reminisce about student life.

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Critics Consensus

Witty and watchable yet undeniably flawed, Kicking and Screaming marks writer-director Noah Baumbach as an emerging talent with intriguing potential.

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Caleb J

Hilarious, relatable, and just brings all the vibes. Noah Baumbach is one of the best writer/director's in Hollywood and this is one of my favorites from him. Can I find a girl like Olivia d'Abo?

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/18/24

Full Review

Christian K

A fun hang with some fake smart and unhappy people, the banter works throughout.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/08/24

Full Review

Lara D

The dialogue in this movie is incredible. The story is about a very specific and difficult transition in life. That moment when you have to learn to fall in to your adult life. The emotional intensity of that time is explored in many different ways, through the different choices of the characters, all brilliantly portrayed by the very talented cast. I love this movie so much that over the course of time I have owned it on video tape, dvd, blue ray, and now I've purchased it on a streaming service. I like to watch it at least once a year.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/13/23

Full Review

Devin B

Some parts are funny but couldn't get into the majority of the story.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

11/13/23

Full Review

dave s

Noah Baumbach's Kicking and Screaming is filled with some clever dialogue. Unfortunately, much of the clever dialogue has nothing to with what preceded it or what follows. And that seems to be the problem with Baumbach's debut as a writer and director – virtually any scene or piece of dialogue could be spliced in elsewhere and nobody would know the difference. The premise of the movie? A group of college graduates, all of them pompous beyond belief, find themselves trapped in a self-created dead zone between university and the real world, a zone where it is acceptable to whine and pout and spout arcane thoughts without any repercussions. The only real reason to watch this is to experience Baumbach's arc as a filmmaker as he evolves and progresses over time from this drivel to, a couple of decades later, the fantastic Marriage Story.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Pre-Gerwig Baumbach at his best because, here, he is most like Whit Stillman, including even some of his actors.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

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Noah Baumbach

Director

Josh Hamilton

Grover

Olivia d'Abo

Jane

Carlos Jacott

Otis

Chris Eigeman

Max

Eric Stoltz

Chet

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David Ansen

Newsweek

Baumbach puts his trust in the details, and he gets them right.

Feb 23, 2018

Full Review

Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: B+

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Nick Schager

Slant Magazine

Charts the aimlessness and ennui of four insufferable, maturation-adverse college grads with relaxed realism.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 16, 2006

Full Review

Anton Bitel

VODzilla.co

Noah Baumbach's debut is a witty not-coming-of-age story set among arrested college graduates.

Oct 22, 2017

Full Review

Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

...clever, confessional narcissism.

Rated: 2.5/4

Oct 10, 2017

Full Review

Gabe Leibowitz

Film and Felt

For a debut, Noah Baumbach's Kicking and Screaming is an impressive effort, but it lacks the resonance or flexibility of his The Squid and the Whale, released ten years later.

Rated: 58/100

Feb 28, 2010

Full Review

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Synopsis

Preppie graduates (Josh Hamilton, Olivia d'Abo, Carlos Jacott) face their first year out of college and reminisce about student life.

Director: Noah Baumbach
Executive Producer: Mark Amin, Carol Baum, Sandy Gallin
Screenwriter: Noah Baumbach, Oliver Berkman
Distributor: Trimark Pictures
Production Co: Trimark Pictures, Sandollar Productions, Castleberg Productions
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 4, 1995, Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 1, 2009
Box Office (Gross USA): $19.5K
Sound Mix: Surround
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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