For decades now, indie filmmaker Nicole Holofcener (“Friends With Money,” “Lovely And Amazing,” “Please Give”) has been delivering sharply observed, bitingly hilarious, empathic, complex comedies about the human condition, family, and life’s ordinary struggles. Often compared to Albert Brooks, Woody Allen, and Walt Stillman, filmmakers of somewhat similar urbane comedies, Holofcener’s always had a tenderness and humanity that maybe seemed a little too far out of reach of those dudes, and yet, never dulling her comedic blade.
Her latest is the comedy “You Hurt My Feelings,” which premiered at Sundance just two months ago to rave reviews (including ours). The film reunites Holofcener with “Seinfeld” and Marvel star Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who starred in her 2013 comedy, “Enough Said,” one of James Gandolfini’s final films. “You Hurt My Feelings” centers on such a small but such a perfectly specific and human problem: the white lies we tell our spouses and the impact they can have. The film centers on a novelist whose longstanding marriage is suddenly upended when she overhears her husband giving his honest reaction to her latest book.
The film also stars Tobias Menzies, David Cross, Amber Tamblyn, Michaela Watkins, Arian Moayed, and Jeannie Berlin. Here’s the official synopsis:
From acclaimed filmmaker Nicole Holofcener comes a sharply observed comedy about a novelist whose longstanding marriage is suddenly upended when she overhears her husband give his honest reaction to her latest book. A film about trust, lies, and the things we say to the people we love most.
I spoke to Holofcener during the pandemic in 2020, right as much of her work was being made available on the Criterion Channel. Honestly, it’s still one of my favorite interviews ever, so I encourage you to give that a listen if you’re a fan of her work.
“You Hurt My Feelings” looks terrific, frankly, and the indie arrives in theaters May 26 via A24. Watch the first trailer below.
