Damsels in Distress

Damsel in Distress' was, in my opinion, one of the worst films I've seen in a decade. The plot fell flat, and everything about this movie was absolutely horrible.

One of the more intriguing talents in Hollywood, I find Greta Gerwig rather annoying in this movie. The characters I couldn't care about and the jokes were so stilted. Lame effort

The script is smart and hilarious. Gerwig is FANTASTIC.

Loved most of Whit Stillman's flicks but this one....eeeah. The first 35 minutes were engaging, witty, quirky, and compelling enough - but then it went off the rails into a fantastical-realism parody of itself. It was like Stillman was aiming to make a Wes Anderson film but he's too wry and observational to do that. Wes Anderson has wisps of sadness comingled with sweetness, directness, whimsy and absurdity. Whit Stillman is too much of a realist to pull off something earnest---so, what is meant by Violet (Cloe Sevigny) saying she is determined to learn as many cliches as she can since cliches stacked back to back contain some of the world's finest wisdom. Two college guys in their D-list fraternity, saying literally: "What color's that? Blue? OK, what color's that? Green...huh. And what color's the wall? That's green too? Whoaaa. You know it's not my fault I'm still learning my colors --how should I know the difference between blue and green? Who are you to think yourself to be superior to someone who has not yet grown into their intellect? I may be ignorant. In fact I am. But at least I'm not arrogant." Like...what Whit Stillman doing here? Who are these people supposed to be? It's not surrealism. Not absurdity. Not farce. Not even poking fun at "dumb jocks" or "stoners" or "braindead children of privilege." It's something half-considered, and tiresome. The whole movie is like that--heavy-handed instead of light-hearted. And somehow not unlike eating a underdone cupcake--smells good, looks terrific, gummy, pasty, doesn't taste great, ends up a chore to finish. Which I didn't. After the initial promising 30-35 minutes I was able to force myself to watch another 25, but no more.

Out of the modern romantic comedies from Whit Stillman, this is by far the most eccentric and filled with punching dry humor and sarcasm. Greta Gerwig absolutely carries an already charming script.

It's very obviously a movie with an acquired taste, which would suggest (and explain) the polarity in the audience reviews.

Greta Gerwig plays Violet, a modern day Jane Austen-like heroine, busying herself by fixing the lives of those around her on an waspish east coast university. Our introduction to Violet and her group of campus friends is by way of Analeigh Tipton, playing a new girl Lily, who the group takes under their wing. Violet: Hello! Are you a new student? Lily: Yes. Violet: Good, we thought so. We'd like to help you. The story follows Violet and her group of friends on an elite fictional university (they don't have a greek system, they use a roman system for sororities and fraternities) where they run a suicide prevention group. Violet: I don't really like the word "depressed". I prefer to say I'm in a tailspin. But enter a plethora of handsome, dumb boys to stir things up between the group members. Heather: [to Lily] Speaking of suicide prevention, do you have a boyfriend, Lily? Rose: Are you dating anyone? Lily: I don't see the connection. Heather: You don't? Violet: Boyfriends are a primary suicide risk. The witty, urbane, bourgeois character who populate writer/director/producer Whit Stillman's films typically either delight or annoy audiences, and for me, I absolutely adore Stillman's films ("Metropolitan" "Barcelona" "Last Days of Disco"). With "Damsels in Distress" Stillman is quoted as saying he wanted to write a film about "four girls in a dorm who are trying to keep things civil in an uncivil world" and think that is a nice summary of this film's tone. Violet: We're also trying to make a difference in people's lives, and one way to do that is to stop them from killing themselves. The girls are an effortlessly likable group, particularly Gerwig and Tipton, who all are a delight to listen to as they banter amongst themselves and with others. Charming exchanges include: Heather: Doar dorm has the university's highest fatality rate as well as the worst hygiene. Lily: Highest suicide rate. Violet: No, the highest fatality rate. It's not certain what percentage were intentional and how many were just due to a temporary unawareness of gravity's laws. Or Violet: We get a lot of students coming to the center pretending to be depressed to get the donuts. Rose: Confidence tricksters! Violet: Yes, it's really bad, really cynical. And we made a pledge the donut company that we would only give the donuts to students who were depressed, suicidal or otherwise nutty. We're a non-profit, so the rules are pretty strict. Or Violet: I took the commuter train to Villa Franka and I checked into a cheap motel there. Rose: The Motel 6? Violet: No, the Motel 4. It's even less expensive. Rose: The Motel 4, in Villa Franka? My god, you really were suicidal. I'll fully admit that Stillman's mannered dialogue is not for all tastes, but I love the clever banter, witty observations, and particularly the verbal sparring, where characters try to prove they're the smartest one in the room. If that sounds like a good time to you, this film is a delight. For others, it may be an endurance test.

anything but in distress.. Damsels In Distress Surprisingly it is flat out hilarious and offers the audience their life of the time throughout the course of time and keeps them engaged throughout the course of it by only walking on something that it is so narrow yet is explored in detail with such an elegance and confidence that it is almost impossible not to be effected by it. The screenplay is gripping, thought-provoking and of ironic nature, all along its well edited and of almost 100 minutes. The camera work is utterly beautiful and is shot nicely too but unfortunately is short on other technical aspects especially on sound department. Whit Stillman; the writer-director, has done a tremendous work on executing the anticipated vision on screen by keeping it light and breezy. Greta Gerwig is amazing on her portrayal and is supported well by her cast and the key to that is the chemistry among them which is more convincing than any other thing. Having said that, the feature chews off too much of the subplots of the characters only to make a definite point which the audience can see far before it even hits, which makes it redundant. Damsels In Distress is anything but in distress, as it flaunts itself on a much larger scale; something to think about.

A Stillman that was stillborn. A movie in distress. From the sparkle of the "Metropolitan" trilogy to the dull, nonsensical, absurdity of this waste of film - only this time it's the women who are chatty and the men are dumber than usual. Looked good at the start; appearances were deceiving. Some good did come of it; Gerwig said to herself "I can do a film better than this," ... and did! | ~ Norm de Guerre

the film starts with a very nice premise that few girls want to be extra good in their lives. But after a point of time the premise does not go anywhere. and film tumbles.