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1[[quoteright:214:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/noah_baumbach.jpg]]
2Noah Baumbach (born September 3, 1969) is an American director known for his depictions of upper-middle-class ennui.
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4He is a close collaborator with, and often compared to Creator/WesAnderson, to the point where the two of them co-wrote ''Film/TheLifeAquaticWithSteveZissou'' and ''WesternAnimation/FantasticMrFox'' together and even share a producer in Scott Rudin. They also have a similar “quirky” style of films, though Baumbach's films usually deal with darker elements than Anderson’s.
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6Baumbach was married to Creator/JenniferJasonLeigh from 2005 to 2013. He‘s now in a relationship with Creator/GretaGerwig, with whom he co-wrote ''Film/Barbie2023'', and whom he directed in ''Film/FrancesHa'' and ''Film/WhiteNoise2022''.
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8----
9
10!!Filmography:
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12* ''Kicking and Screaming'' (1995)
13* ''Highball'' (1997)
14* ''Mr. Jealousy'' (1998)
15* ''Film/TheSquidAndTheWhale'' (2005)
16* ''Margot at the Wedding'' (2007)
17* ''Greenberg'' (2010)
18* ''Film/FrancesHa'' (2012)
19* ''While We’re Young'' (2014)
20* ''Mistress America'' (2015)
21* ''[[Creator/BrianDePalma De Palma]]'' [[note]] Co-directed with Jake Paltrow [[/note]] (2015)
22* ''Film/TheMeyerowitzStories'' (New and Selected) (2017)
23* ''Film/MarriageStory'' (2019)
24* ''Film/{{White Noise|2022}}'' (2022)
25
26!!Tropes present in his work:
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28* AlanSmithee: For ''Highball'', he was credited as "Ernie Fusco" for director and "Jesse Carter" for co-writer.
29* AuthorAppeal: He seems to love characters who refuse to grow up and relationships falling apart.
30* BigApplesauce
31* BlackComedy
32* CentralTheme: DysfunctionalFamily.
33* CreatorBacklash: ''Highball'' is one to him, with him referring to it as basically unfinished. and all but disowning it.
34* CreatorCouple: With Creator/JenniferJasonLeigh for ''Greenberg'', and later Creator/GretaGerwig for ''Frances Ha'', ''Mistress America'', and ''Film/Barbie2023''.
35* CreatorsOddball: Noah Baumbach is the writer of ''Film/TheSquidAndTheWhale'', ''WesternAnimation/FantasticMrFox'', ''Film/TheMeyerowitzStories'', ''Film/MarriageStory'' and......[[Film/Barbie2023 Barbie]]?
36** He is also co-writer for ''WesternAnimation/Madagascar3EuropesMostWanted''.
37* CreatorProvincialism: Tends to set his movies in his native UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity.
38* DarkerAndEdgier: Than his collaborator Wes Anderson.
39* DysfunctionalFamily: When families in his movies are reunited, they all seem to be at least somewhat dysfunctional.
40* GreyAndGrayMorality
41* GrowingUpSucks: A major theme of his work involves people who stubbornly refuse to grow up.
42* HumansAreFlawed: Characters can be really stubborn, ignorant, arrogant, or immature (refusing to grow up and take responsibility) however that doesn't mean they are all [[HumansAreBastards outright horrible people]].
43* PigeonholedDirector: He, like Wes Anderson, is known for “quirky” movies about upper-middle class people, though his style is more caustic.
44* PlayingAgainstType: He’s best known for his dramedies about people who struggle to grow up. He also co-wrote the screenplay for ''WesternAnimation/Madagascar3EuropesMostWanted'', a decision that, as implied by ''Marriage Story'', was [[MoneyDearBoy largely financial]] following his divorce from Jennifer Jason Leigh.
45* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVsCynicism: His earlier films are ''very'' cynical. However, his past few films have been somewhere in the middle.
46* TechnicianVsPerformer: The Performer to Wes Anderson’s Technician.
47* UnsympatheticComedyProtagonist: Though with ''Margot'', the characters fall under SociopathicHero.
48* WriteWhatYouKnow: ''Film/TheSquidAndTheWhale'' and ''Film/TheMeyerowitzStories'' were his sort of personal therapy stories based on his relationship with his family, particularly his father.
49* WhatCouldHaveBeen: Originally, he wanted Wes Anderson to direct ''The Squid and the Whale'', but Anderson declined on the grounds that only Baumbach could tell his own personal story.

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