Elizabeth Olsen and Josh Radnor in the light-hearted collegiate comedy Liberal Arts. (Courtesy of Sundance Select Films)
Recently, there has been a slew of arguments against the real world value of a liberal arts degree in today’s skill-oriented, project-based workplace. Gone are the days where a Latin and philosophy double major can hope for any occupation beyond the halls of academia.
Josh Radnor uses the subject of liberal arts as a backdrop for his newest film named – you guessed it – Liberal Arts.
In the film, Radnor plays Jesse Fisher, a college counselor who is obviously not happy in his ho-hum day job. When Fisher is lured back to his former college to send a retiring professor off, Fisher falls back in love with the tree-lined solace of higher education as well as a 19-year old named Zibby, played marvelously by Elizabeth Olsen.
The duration of Liberal Arts focuses on Fisher’s struggle to leave the past behind despite its academic and artistic pleasure.
Radnor definitely earned his paycheck for the feature as the actor also wrote and directed the film. Radnor’s writing style mimics the simplicity of his first feature, Happythankyoumoreplease. However, there are parts in the film where the writer takes the story’s base too seriously and convolutes the dialogue with uppity, academic speak.
As an actor, Radnor sticks to his own, self-formed archetypal character quite well. For some reason, Radnor always paints the characters he plays with scruffy beards and minimal life direction, which begs the question: Does Radnor even know how to shave?
While Radnor may have been the driving force behind the film, it’s Olsen’s Zibby who ultimately comes out of Liberal Arts as the star.
Zibby is just an confused as Fisher in terms of life direction and turns to him for adult-like advice that Fisher, unfortunately, is too immature to dish out.
Olsen’s portrayel of Zibby is light and loveable. One finds oneself understanding just how easy it was for Radnor to fall for Zibby.
Liberal Arts opens today in select Dallas movie theaters.
