his school's talent show. After he wins first place and receives praise from his family and friends, his school realizes that he did not write the song. At this point, the school calls Bernard and Joan in to discuss Walt. They all agree that he should see the school psychologist. At the meeting with the psychologist, Walt starts to see things without the taint of his father's opinions. The psychologist asks Walt for a happy memory. After some reluctance, he tells how his mother would take him, when he was very young, to see the giant squid and whale exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History; the exhibit scared him, so he would look at it through his fingers. Then, at home, they would discuss what they saw. As they talked, the exhibit would become less scary. It becomes clear to Walt that his father was never really present, and that his mother was the one who cared for him. After a heated argument between Bernard and Joan over custody and whether Joan would take him back, Bernard collapses on the street outside their home and is taken to the hospital. Bernard asks Walt to stay by his side, but Walt instead runs to the Natural History Museum. The film ends with him standing in front of the exhibit, now able to look at it. Cast Jeff Daniels as Bernard Berkman; a selfish and arrogant writer. Laura Linney as Joan Berkman; a writer and unfaithful ex-wife. Jesse Eisenberg as Walt Berkman Owen Kline as Frank Berkman Anna Paquin as Lili William Baldwin as Ivan Halley Feiffer as Sophie Greenberg Ken Leung as School Therapist David Benger as Carl Adam Rose as Otto Peter Newman as Mr. Greenberg Peggy Gormley as Mrs. Greenberg Greta Kline as Greta Greenberg Maryann Plunkett as Ms. Lemon Alexandra Daddario as Pretty Girl Production Bill Murray, a frequent collaborator to producer Wes Anderson, was considered for the role of Bernard Berkman. John Turturro was also considered for the role. Noah Baumbach looked to documentaries, French New Wave films, and John Cassavetes and early Martin Scorsese films when envisioning the style of the film. He shot the film in Super 16 rather than digital video "to give the film an authentic 1980’s feel", commenting "Super 16 also feels lived-in, instantly looks like an older film. I wanted to handhold the movie, but steadily, so you detect