Liberal Arts Receives A Passing Grade
Liberal Arts is the second feature film written and directed by How I Met Your Mother star Josh Radnor.
The 2012 dramedy explores themes such as the nature of aging and the journey of self discovery.
Thirty-five-year-old Jesse Fisher (Radnor) has a job in college admissions in New York. Invited to speak at a retirement dinner for his former professor, Peter Hoberg (Richard Jenkins) he drives down to his alma mater in Ohio. Jenkins, though not on screen very long, gives a strong performance as Professor Hoberg, whose heavenly idea of retirement isn’t what he thought it would be.
During Jesse’s visit, he meets free-spirited freshman Zibby (Elizabeth Olsen). Their love of art and substantial conversations sparks an instant connection.
Jesse also befriends Dean (John Magaro), an unstable student whose love for fiction brings him loneliness and comfort altogether.
Meanwhile, Jesse drools over his former Romantic British Literature professor Judith Fairfield (Allison Janney) who doesn’t have a care in the world for his appreciation.
Zibby and Jesse destiny is soon clear when they have a discussion about her enjoyment of the insinuated Twilight saga and his argument of it being the worst book ever written in English.
It is obvious throughout the film that Ana (Elizabeth Reaser) would end up as Jesse’s life partner, which is somewhat disappointing since they don’t share much of a connection until the end.
Jesse realizes he cares for Zibby but is actually in love with what she represents, the youthful life he yearns for—reading books and poems all day and being around young dreamers waiting to enter the real world.
Through the people Jesse comes across, he discovers that although it may not seem like it at first, growing older is okay.
The films’ clever writing and endearing cast—including the unexpected Zac Efron as Nat, a dramatic hipster who seemed more like a spiritual mentor than an actual person—help to keep the film from being pretentious and exceed in providing insight of life’s expectations from different age groups.
Liberal Arts is a good little film that shows promise for Radnor’s future as he continues to grow in his craft of filmmaking.
