Not much happens in the entire The Land of Steady Habits, but thanks to a fantastic cast, it doesn't have to. Additionally, in this comedy-drama, there is a lot more sadness than laughter. However, like much of the film and the suburban lives it depicts, both the laughs and the cries are toned down and colorless, as if asking the viewer to ultimately generate some kind of cathartic experience, if possible.
The plot follows Anders, a retired and divorced man looking for either fun or meaning, but failing to find either. Through his navigation of the old life that he slowly imploded, we find the angst and suffering of the modern, well-to-do US suburbia. But, this film makes the same old tale into something that simply can’t move us. Instead, it does make us wonder if we're just as comfortably lost as the unlikable protagonist. The ultimate point could be that it doesn't really matter either way.
The plot follows Anders, a retired and divorced man looking for either fun or meaning, but failing to find either. Through his navigation of the old life that he slowly imploded, we find the angst and suffering of the modern, well-to-do US suburbia. But, this film makes the same old tale into something that simply can’t move us. Instead, it does make us wonder if we're just as comfortably lost as the unlikable protagonist. The ultimate point could be that it doesn't really matter either way.
