Brilliant and touching

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

There is a very fine and very long scene in the midst of all this that warrants a large portion of the points I have given this between the lead and the Dean of the college he attends. Although it had a good amount of room to be even better, it was a stellar achievement. That and the tragic ending of the hero.But much of it was quite odd.Very long intro of sorts to the college kid Marcus played by Logan Lerman. Several redundant scenes where we are repeatedly shown the same thing. Problems with the parents, which I found to be irrelevant to the story as a whole. The colorful elements of the room mates that went nowhere.But this was the love story between Lerman and Sarah Gadon. Not only did the first date not take place until 40 minutes in, we have no real idea of her until the date, other than she is strikingly pretty. On top of that the character apparently asked for the date off-camera.The first date was intriguing but vague at the same time. She's a bit odd, sure. But then very quickly to the blow job. Now I know it took place in 1951 and there was an element of trying to make him overwhelmed by the actions. But he wasn't until several days after the fact. All in all, I did not buy his apathy, even in that time frame. And she was supposedly mentally unstable, which was never really evident to me. Her scene of being very attracted to him rang false and his continual apathy was false. He was established as inexperienced and would have easily fallen under her spell. But then the whole relationship, although both charming people, was based around quite a lot of hand jobs. Yes, even though the character's mental history was presented, I did not get that from the portrayal, which is the fault of the director. Thus, I was open to a volatile relationship based on passion but was given an odd fixation on hand jobs between two reasonable people. Subsequently they could have cut out the difficulties the mother was having with the kid's father. It had zero relevance to anything, was described completely in dialogue when it should have been shown and took away from the love story. I just kept thinking that the mother should give hand jobs to the father.The device to get our hero kicked out of college and sent to Korea was very false. This kid had established a relationship with the Dean, whose sermons he was required to attend on a weekly basis in order to graduate. But they insisted on having him hire another student to sit in for him (as I knew that would lead to the inevitable). There was a sad poetry to the final outcome but too little, too late.

The 2016 film version of Philip Roth's novel "Indignation" feels genuine with a high-degree of realism in regards to both emotionally resonant acting and dialog that perfectly captures the zeitgeist of post-WWII early 1950's. Showcasing the burgeoning time period when bright & ambitious college students just began to question social-mores, testing restrictive boundaries on personal freedoms established by long-standing arbiters of authority.**Spoiler Alert** Focusing on the trials & tribulations of the intensely-bright & ambitious (though somewhat naive) 'Marcus Messner' (with expert portrayal by Logan Lerman) adjusting to student-life at the rural-provincial Mid-western college called 'Winesburg' in Ohio.  Marcus' family is Jewish with father being a Kosher butcher in Newark, New Jersey. But Marcus views himself as an uncompromising 'rationalist' who doesn't allow religious-strictures to hold him back from wide-ranging (and free-thinking) academic goals.  His intellectual-hero is not surprisingly the renowned British mathematician-philosopher Bertrand Russell.One contradictory aspect to Marcus' character is that even though apparently eschewing his family's Jewish religion, Marcus lives by uncompromisingly stringent ethical-standards acutely aware of even the slightest perceived hypocritical musings or thoughtless actions witnessed in the views of the people around him. Marcus' uncompromising World-view sets-the-stage for a stimulating intellectual battle of wills with the college Dean Caudwell (intensely portrayed by Tracy Letts).At first, Dean Caudwell appears genuinely concerned that Marcus is not readily conforming to college-life at Winesburg , with Marcus storming-out of his shared dorm room and subsequently  living in isolation. This dramatic but intensely-realistic conversation matches wits of Marcus' rebellious rational-humanism against Dean's emphasis on family, faith and moral-fortitude along with an emphasis on properly 'fitting-in' (Dean is also perplexed that Marcus does not find identity, solace and strong sense of 'bonding' within his culturally-rich Jewish heritage).  The scene is endlessly fascinating (and relevant) as neither Marcus nor Dean Caudwell can make the slightest dent in the other's sense of moral certitude, constantly talking miles past each other.  There is also the mysterious Love-tangle whereby inexperienced/innocent Marcus is emotionally overpowered by the delicately-beautiful (but perhaps bit unstable) 'Olivia Hutton' (immaculately portrayed by Sarah Gadon). Initially, Marcus cannot fathom how Olivia seems to have taken an intense liking to him, even granting an unexpected/ unrequested 'favor' on their very first date that makes Marcus' head spin, requiring a bit of time for Marcus to fully comprehend what actually happened that first night. Backing away from Olivia for awhile, Marcus feels those irresistible magnetic-forces relentlessly pulling on his heartstrings in short-order.  There is much more to Olivia Hutton than meets the eye of course, embodying a fragile emotional complexity that is far beyond anyone's comprehension.Foreshadowing everything else in Philip Roth's historically-resonant narrative inherent to "Indignation" i.e. the foreboding sense that even the most rational-Logical and well-intentioned human-being can never escape the clutches of Fate and unsympathetic circumstance.  Even Marcus' abundant capacity for 'mind-over-matter' problem-solving (along with his sincere intentions) cannot guarantee that everything will 'work-out' in the End --- and in fact, the immutable circumstances of 'history' (and especially the 'wages of War') seem to have pre-ordained Marcus' tragic fate."Indignation" flawlessly directed by James Schamus and brilliantly acted by Logan Lerman, Tracy Letts and Sarah Gadon superlatively rises to the occasion and presents a realistic and heartrending cinematic 'time & place' that perfectly captures Philip Roth's intriguing + insightful narrative ruminating upon the era in America when attitudes (and philosophical outlooks) really began to break-free of age-old acceptances, even shedding light on the beginnings of some of our Country's current deep-rooted political & cultural divisions (and immutable historical circumstance).

I haven't read the original work,but I can feel that Bertram is a homo and crushing one Marcus1.Ignore at first --- hide emotion2.Sing "March of the Volunteers" at first meet --- so exciting3.Loud music he play in the dorm -- attention attraction4.Twelfth Night.--- obviously hint his feel for Marcus5.Sensitive to the love letters. ---- "You don't feel anything for me?"6.Last glance back in the church. ---- full of depression7:The dean asks Marcus how many dates he has gone since he's been Winsberg,this is an odd question at that situation;,he probably want to tell Marcus,Bertram needs to be cared just like you are,but Marcus thinks about blew thing,gets angry and changes the subject to religion issues. Anyway,this is the cause of the stories next to it,if my guess is right,homosexual repression in that time.sad stories for both of the two people

This is nearly a perfectly executed movie. The acting by all the main characters is excellent. It is pensive and slow,but not is a way that causes the viewer to be uninterested. In fact I watched several scenes,several times.A young,very bright Jewish man receives a scholarship to a Christian college in 1951. He is openly atheist and angry he must endure chapel and thinking in general from others of a primitive thinking nature. But he is a buthcher's son and this is his chance to ve mich more,the world is at his fingertips. He,himself is young and naive,especially when it comes to women. However he meets a beautiful precocious women with some emotional problems and a reputation. Never the less he is taken with her as she is with him. The story revolves around his relationship with her as well as the students and a especially an ingratiating forcefully conservative Dean played extremely well by Tracy Letts.Many will find this too thoughtful,too pensive,too slow. It is simply not the kind of movie many usually see today. Certainly not like what most rush off to see at the theaters with 3D glasses,action,thrills and CGI. It simply isn't that kind of movie. This is what we use to call a film. This one is for the thinkers. Intelligent,disturbing,thoughtful. 4 stars.