Genre Guesstimation – Barry (2016)

The idea behind this feature (Genre Guesstimation) is for me to watch a bunch of new movies (or ones that I haven’t seen many times) from the chosen monthly GG genre in order to expand my knowledge of movies within that particular genre.

This month’s genre has been chosen by Nick Rehak of French Toast Sunday and we will be reviewing our favorite Biographical Films.

Please get me your submissions by the 25th of May by sending them to bionick@movierob.net

Try to think out of the box! Great choice Nick!

Let’s see if I felt that this movie would be worthy of being in the company of my others favorite movies in the genre of Biographical Films……

“I read somewhere that college isn’t about learning. It’s about training.” – Barry

Number of Times Seen – 1 (9 May 2021)

Brief Synopsis – A look at the early life of Barack Obama during his studies in University and his identity crisis.

My Take on it – Intriguing idea that doesn’t work well enough.

The fact that this is based on the college years of Barack Obama doesn’t really play into the story and fails to help make things more interesting to watch unfold.

The story’s main focus is the idea of identity and how one defines their own and that of others around them.

The man character’s discussions about his own identity with others both verbally and in letter form helps keep things more engaging even if the roller coaster ride of the story just isn’t profound or meaningful enough

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The film is inspired by writings from “Dreams from My Father,” Barack Obama’s debut 1995 bestseller. In what’s almost an auto-biography, Obama pens reflections on his earlier, scorned life as he struggled to reconcile with his race, scenes of which are portrayed in “Barry” (2016). (From IMDB)

Genre Grandeur Worthy? – Nope. The premise is quite good, but it just isn’t presented well enough to stay interesting despite knowing the main character’s identity.

Rating – BAFTA Worthy (5/10)