\n<\/p>\n
Perfidia left Bob and Willa 16 years earlier, and DiCaprio\u2019s character hasn\u2019t fully recovered from the blow. \u201cHe\u2019s not only getting older but also increasingly cranky and closed off,\u201d Anderson said in a press release<\/a> for the film. \u201cIt\u2019s those mundane battles of daily life that are wearing on him. No one, not even Bob, can outrun what\u2019s inevitable. Now he is trying to be a good father and watch his daughter, Willa, and the next generation come up. But they\u2019re not doing it like he did.\u201d DiCaprio said that Bob\u2019s journey in the film, then, centers on reclaiming his sense of purpose in an evolving social landscape. \u201cIt\u2019s about trying to be fearless in an age where we are riddled with fear and constantly silenced, but coming out of our shells\u2026. He\u2019s been somebody that\u2019s been isolated, suspicious, and paranoid, and he\u2019s pushed into a set of circumstances where he needs to be fearless.\u201d<\/p>\n He\u2019s not the only Man of a Certain Age grappling with modern masculinity and his place in a politically fraught climate. Also sporting a tiny, greasy bun and some oversized eyewear is Balls, Bradley Cooper<\/strong>\u2019s character in Is This Thing On?<\/em> (out December 19). Cooper and Will Arnett,<\/strong> who plays the film\u2019s leading man, Alex, star as frazzled fathers navigating middle age with the help of cannabis. Both plaid-clad men have stoned epiphanies about their respective marriages (to Andra Day<\/strong> and Laura Dern<\/strong>) and professional lives\u2014Cooper\u2019s character is a struggling actor, while Arnett\u2019s is a wannabe stand-up comedian. \u201cThis movie is not a midlife crisis\u2014it\u2019s a midlife catharsis,\u201d Cooper, who directed the film, told Vanity Fair<\/a>.<\/em> \u201cSometimes you realize you\u2019re coasting and you\u2019ve lost your rudder and your North Star in life, and that takes a toll on whoever is in your orbit.\u201d<\/p>\n