BRAD’S STATUS

A father takes his son to tour colleges on the East Coast and meets up with an old friend who makes him feel inferior about his life’s choices.
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Supposed to be a comedy drama but there is very little to laugh at. BRAD’S STATUS is a very serious meditation on the demoralising effect of comparing our lives with those we often define as “successful”. Ben Stiller, who plays the father, is having an existential crisis because he feels his life has been a waste when compared to a number of his old school mates who have made it big. There’s a very important message in this movie about valuing the simple lives that most of us lead rather than pursuing status, money, and power. It’s good to see Ben Stiller (Zoolander) in something substantial. His performance is good, as is Austin Abrams (Paper Towns) who plays the son and is on screen with Stiller most of the time. It lags a bit at times and could have been more daring. I felt very depressed at the end of this one — but with a needed nudge to reflect on what things I truly value in life. An insightful movie — especially for those living in the so-called “first world”.