Nicole Holofcener specialises in arch, closely observed comedies about the travails of modern life, and her latest offering is no exception. Starring Julia Louis-Dreyfuss and Tobias Menzies, You Hurt My Feelings is in cinemas now.
Louis-Dreyfuss, who previously worked with Holofcener on 2013’s Enough Said, is novelist Beth, long married to therapist Don (played by Menzies). They share a comfortable life in New York City, along with their adult son Elliot (Owen Teague). However, when Beth overhears Don telling his brother-in-law Mark (Arian Moayed) that he doesn’t like the upcoming novel she’s been slaving over for years her confidence is shattered, and fault lines start to appear in their relationship.
Around these two orbit a little network of similarly creative, similarly anxious urbanistas. Elliot, recently moved back home after being dumped, works in a weed dispensary while working on his first play. Mark is a frustrated actor. his wife Sarah (Michaela Watkins), Beth’s sister, is an interior decorator struggling to please a difficult client (Clara Wong). And closer to home, two of Don’s patients (Amber Tamblyn and David Cross) are suing him due to the general uselessness of his therapy. And so it goes.
Droll and perceptive, You Hurt My Feelings is another comedy of modern manners from Holofcener, who delights in exposing the foibles and hypocrisies of moneyed liberals—more or less with affection, but without a lot of mercy. With this one, we’re spending time in a world where seemingly every character is struggling with impostor syndrome, their egos ready to crumble at the slightest criticism despite whatever impressive accomplishments they have under their belts.
Well, we’ve all got our insecurities, right? At least Holofcener’s characters get to express theirs with her trademark sharp and witty dialogue. You Hurt My Feelings might not heal your own anxieties, but it’ll probably make you feel better about them.
