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Generation Um...

Generation Um...

To survive you must discover who you are. Or not...

201297 minRMidcredits score: 9th percentile of all films
Director
Mark Mann
Starring
Keanu Reeves, Bojana Novakovic, Adelaide Clemens, Jake Hoffman

A drama that follows three adults during a single day in New York, one filled with sex, drugs, and indecision.

Where to watch

Where can I watch Generation Um...?

As of October 24, 2026, MovieCove lists Generation Um... streaming on MovieSphere+ via Prime Video, Prime Video and Tubi (free) and to rent or buy on Prime Video.

Your rating, lists and review

Highlights

What stands out about Generation Um...?

Generation Um... earns 2 badges, led by Overhyped and Thought-provoking.

  • Reception
  • Craft and mood

Reception

Is Generation Um... worth watching?

Generation Um...'s Midcredits score is the 9th percentile of all films, from 6.4K ratings across 6 sources. 25% liked it (rated it 7 or higher out of 10).

Midcredits score

How well it was received

9th percentile

Better received than 9% of films

7th percentile among Crime10th percentile among 2010s
Acclaim (how much people like it)7th
Approval (how many liked it)15th

42 /100

7th percentile of all films

4th percentile among Crime8th percentile among 2010s

Critics 25 · Audience 44

Audiences liked it more than critics did.

Rating distribution

Ratings scatter across the whole scale — one of the most divisive reactions in the catalog.

Approval

How many liked it

25% liked it

15th percentile of all films

13th percentile among Crime15th percentile among 2010s
25% rated it 7–1075% rated it 1–6

Critics 0% · Audience 23%

On Rotten Tomatoes, a bigger share of audiences approved than critics.

83rd percentile

6.4K ratings across platforms

79th percentile among Crime84th percentile among 2010s
TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Down 28% in 30 days

Box office

Budget$1.7M

What reviewers say

Common ground

A slow, plotless, documentary-style portrait of three aimless people in NYC, with heavy emphasis on raw realism and mundane detail.

Fans praised

  • Raw, unglossed realism feels like a documentary
  • Emotionally affecting character study beneath the surface
  • Strong lead performance fits the role's quiet damaged quality

Detractors panned

  • Plotless, boring, nothing happens for long stretches
  • Muddled audio and shaky amateur cinematography
  • Unlikable, shallow characters with no real development

What stands out

AtmosphereDivisive55

Immersive gritty realism of NYC underbelly vs. drab, unappealing setting

ActingDivisive48

Keanu Reeves quietly effective; female leads natural but divisive; overall performances called wooden by many

Emotional impactDivisive45

Haunting empathy for lonely, damaged characters vs. leaves you cold or annoyed

CharactersDivisive35

Sympathetic lost souls with hidden depth vs. uninteresting, badly written nonentities

DialogueDivisive35

Some natural, improvised-feeling conversation but often mumbled or trivial

CinematographyDivisive30

Deliberately raw, handheld found-footage style vs. amateurish, dizzying, poorly shot

Plot and storyDivisive15

Deliberately aimless day-in-the-life vs. nonexistent story with no point

PacingDivisive15

Hypnotic slow burn vs. painfully boring, feel every minute wasted

Preferred by

No notable difference between any of the groups: each pair ranks it within 10 percentile points.

  • Women vs men even
  • US vs non-US 4 points apart

Watch experience

What is Generation Um... like to watch?

Conclusions only — categories and positions, no plot detail.

Quiet and reflective: browse every movie of this kind

Watch this when you are in a patient, quiet mood.

It is gentle, takes its time and leaves you thinking. Skip it when you want things to move fast or you want every question answered.

ToneFeelDemandwhat the answer rests onexact position · filled zone: the category

What it asks of you

Patience and a taste for open questions.

What it feels like

Quiet and reflective.

Moods
MelancholicBittersweet
Heaviest: throughout
Register
Bleak · 8% of filmsBrooding: Heavy, inward, weather-beaten.
Told as
Episodic · 13% of films: Loosely connected incidents rather than one driving plot.
ToneThe film presents its characters' aimless lives with unflinching, naturalistic observation, creating a deeply bleak and brooding atmosphere.
The rideThe depiction of a routine drift through sex, drugs, and indecision likely sustains a low-intensity melancholic mood without dramatic highs or lows.
StructureThe film follows a single day through loosely connected scenes and observations, without a conventional dramatic structure.

How it leaves you

what you carry away

Thinking.

Thought-provokingHaunting · 14% of films
Why it leaves you this wayThe film leaves a lingering sense of aimlessness and desolation, prompting reflection on the characters' empty lives.
How it ends · evidence
Ambiguous ending

Story archetype

where it sits among all films
Monster — 21% of films. A threat menaces the hero's world and must be defeated.Rags — 3% of films. A rise from lowliness to fortune, status, or recognition.Quest — 10% of films. A journey toward a defined objective, with companions and obstacles.Voyage — 4% of films. Into a strange world and back again, changed.Comedy — 11% of films. Confusion and cross-purposes resolved into harmony.Tragedy — 9% of films. A flaw or fixation drives the protagonist to ruin.Rebirth — 13% of films. A stalled or darkened life reopened and renewed.Mystery — 7% of films. A question drives the story — who did it, what happened, what is real — until it is answered.No archetype — 22% of filmsPredator — 6% of films. A creature or killer hunts the protagonists (Jaws, Alien).Tyrant — 6% of films. A human villain holds power over the hero's world (Die Hard).Invasion — 2% of films. An external force attacks the home or world (Independence Day).Oppressive state — 2% of films. A government, its agencies or a secret faction inside them is the monster (V for Vendetta).Corporate villainy — 1% of films. A company or its bosses are the monster (Erin Brockovich).Institutional injustice — 1% of films. A court, prison, police force, school or church is itself the enemy (Spotlight).Class system — under 1% of films. The gap between rich and poor, or a rigid hierarchy, is the monster (Parasite).Technology turns — under 1% of films. Technology people rely on becomes the threat (The Terminator).Inner demon — 1% of films. The monster is within — addiction, illness, a dark double.Underdog triumph — 2% of films. Rise through competition or contest (Rocky).Social ascent — under 1% of films. A climb in class or status (Pretty Woman).Fame and fortune — under 1% of films. An artistic or showbiz rise (A Star Is Born).Rise and fall — under 1% of films. Wealth or power gained, self lost (Scarface).Hidden worth revealed — under 1% of films. The protagonist's true value finally recognized.Treasure hunt — 1% of films. Retrieve an object of value (Raiders of the Lost Ark).Rescue — 4% of films. Retrieve or save a person (Saving Private Ryan).Mission — 5% of films. Accomplish or destroy a defined objective (Mission: Impossible).Journey home — under 1% of films. The goal is getting back (Finding Nemo).Pilgrimage — 1% of films. The journey itself transforms; the destination is symbolic.Portal fantasy — under 1% of films. Transported into another world (The Wizard of Oz).Fish out of water — 2% of films. Displaced into an unfamiliar social world (Elf).Survival ordeal — 1% of films. Trapped in a hostile environment, fighting back (Cast Away).Time displacement — under 1% of films. Unstuck in time (Back to the Future).Descent — 1% of films. A night-journey into an underworld or subculture (After Hours).Romantic comedy — 4% of films. Lovers kept apart by confusion, united at last.Comedy of errors — 3% of films. Mistaken identity or misunderstanding drives the plot.Farce — 2% of films. Escalating absurd chaos and coincidence (The Hangover).Buddy comedy — 1% of films. A mismatched pair forced together (Rush Hour).Comedy of manners — 1% of films. Social codes and class satirized (Clueless).Hubris — 1% of films. Pride or ambition invites the fall (There Will Be Blood).Obsession — 2% of films. A fixation consumes the protagonist (Black Swan).Corruption arc — 2% of films. Step-by-step moral decay (The Godfather).Doomed love — 2% of films. Love destroyed by circumstance (Brokeback Mountain).Crushed by fate — 3% of films. Destroyed by forces beyond the protagonist's control.Redemption — 3% of films. Moral reawakening of a hardened soul (A Christmas Carol).Healing — 5% of films. Recovery from grief or trauma (Good Will Hunting).Liberation — 2% of films. Breaking free of a confining life (Room).Second chance — 2% of films. A stagnant life re-opened to love or purpose (Groundhog Day).Puzzle — 1% of films. A clue-by-clue puzzle you can try to solve before the reveal (Knives Out, Clue).Investigation — 5% of films. A long pursuit of the truth that may never be fully solved (Zodiac, Memories of Murder).Enigma — 2% of films. The mystery is what is real, or what is actually happening (Mulholland Drive).
Every story archetype, clockwise from the top
  • Monster 21%: Predator 6% · Tyrant 6% · Invasion 2% · Oppressive state 2% · Corporate villainy 1% · Institutional injustice 1% · Class system under 1% · Technology turns under 1% · Inner demon 1%
  • Rags 3%: Underdog triumph 2% · Social ascent under 1% · Fame and fortune under 1% · Rise and fall under 1% · Hidden worth revealed under 1%
  • Quest 10%: Treasure hunt 1% · Rescue 4% · Mission 5% · Journey home under 1% · Pilgrimage 1%
  • Voyage 4%: Portal fantasy under 1% · Fish out of water 2% · Survival ordeal 1% · Time displacement under 1% · Descent 1%
  • Comedy 11%: Romantic comedy 4% · Comedy of errors 3% · Farce 2% · Buddy comedy 1% · Comedy of manners 1%
  • Tragedy 9%: Hubris 1% · Obsession 2% · Corruption arc 2% · Doomed love 2% · Crushed by fate 3%
  • Rebirth 13%: Redemption 3% · Healing 5% · Liberation 2% · Second chance 2%
  • Mystery 7%: Puzzle 1% · Investigation 5% · Enigma 2%
  • No archetype 22% (this title)

No archetype fits — true of 22% of films: ensemble pieces, satire, slice-of-life.

Why this archetypeThe film is a meandering day-in-the-life with no central narrative arc or conflict; it observes its characters rather than driving toward a resolution.

What it's about

7 groups · 53 themes
Bonds — 27% of filmsSelf — 22% of filmsPower — 7% of filmsMorality — 16% of filmsSurvival — 15% of filmsSociety — 9% of filmsIdeas — 5% of filmsRomantic love — 15% of filmsMarriage — 2% of filmsFamily bonds — 21% of filmsParenthood — 2% of filmsFriendship — 9% of filmsLoyalty — 4% of filmsIdentity — 14% of filmsComing of age — 5% of filmsAging — under 1% of filmsSelf-worth — 7% of filmsAmbition — 7% of filmsPurpose — 9% of filmsMemory — 3% of filmsObsession — 3% of films. A fixation consumes the protagonist (Black Swan).Power — 2% of filmsCorruption — 3% of filmsGreed — 3% of filmsClass — 3% of filmsOppression — 4% of filmsFreedom — 5% of filmsJustice — 13% of filmsDuty — 2% of filmsRevenge — 4% of filmsGuilt — 3% of filmsRedemption — 6% of films. Moral reawakening of a hardened soul (A Christmas Carol).Forgiveness — 1% of filmsSacrifice — 4% of filmsBetrayal — 5% of filmsDeception — 9% of filmsSurvival — 17% of filmsWar — 1% of filmsViolence — 4% of filmsMortality — 2% of filmsGrief — 6% of filmsTrauma — 7% of filmsMental illness — 1% of filmsAddiction — 1% of filmsIllness and disability — under 1% of filmsCommunity — 14% of films. Consequences reach a town, institution or group.Isolation — 5% of filmsPrejudice — 3% of filmsDisplacement — 1% of filmsFaith — 3% of filmsTradition vs change — 2% of filmsFame — 3% of filmsLegacy — 4% of filmsFate — 1% of filmsFree will — under 1% of filmsTruth — 4% of filmsHope — 5% of filmsNature — 2% of filmsArt — 4% of filmsTechnology — 1% of filmsSelfPurposeSelf
Every theme, clockwise from the top
  • Bonds 27%: Romantic love 15% · Marriage 2% · Family bonds 21% · Parenthood 2% · Friendship 9% · Loyalty 4%
  • Self 22% (this title): Identity 14% (this title) · Coming of age 5% · Aging under 1% · Self-worth 7% · Ambition 7% · Purpose 9% (this title) · Memory 3% · Obsession 3%
  • Power 7%: Power 2% · Corruption 3% · Greed 3% · Class 3% · Oppression 4% · Freedom 5%
  • Morality 16%: Justice 13% · Duty 2% · Revenge 4% · Guilt 3% · Redemption 6% · Forgiveness 1% · Sacrifice 4% · Betrayal 5% · Deception 9%
  • Survival 15%: Survival 17% · War 1% · Violence 4% · Mortality 2% · Grief 6% · Trauma 7% · Mental illness 1% · Addiction 1% · Illness and disability under 1%
  • Society 9%: Community 14% · Isolation 5% · Prejudice 3% · Displacement 1% · Faith 3% · Tradition vs change 2% · Fame 3% · Legacy 4%
  • Ideas 5%: Fate 1% · Free will under 1% · Truth 4% · Hope 5% · Nature 2% · Art 4% · Technology 1%

Self

Purpose · 9% of filmsIdentity · 14% of films
Observes its theme: Presents its theme neutrally, declining to judge.Intimate stakes: Consequences reach a person or a household.Single lead
How it treats its themeThe characters are adrift in a routine of indulgence and indecision, suggesting a search for meaning or direction.
StanceThe synopsis presents a day-in-the-life observation of John and his cohorts without passing moral judgment, simply depicting their routine.

The world

ContemporaryUrbanIn transitRealistic
AmbientBackground music · original score · Will Bates
Settinga day drifting through New York City bars and apartments
MusicScore likely provides an understated ambient bed for the low-key, observational mood.

Content guide

Is Generation Um... okay for kids?

R

Generation Um... is rated R: “Rated R for strong sexual content, drug use and language” (MPAA). As of August 31, 2026, Midcredits content scores put its violence at mild (33/100), sexual content at moderate (55/100), language at moderate (50/100), drug and alcohol content at moderate (50/100) and frightening material at moderate (50/100). Its violence, language, drug and alcohol content and frightening material have too few votes to rank.

Ratings in 4 other countries
  • Germany16
  • Brazil16
  • RO18+
  • Russia16+
Overall
Moderate · all five categories
not ranked
Violence & Gore
Mild · audience split: No severity level holds a majority of voters
too few votes to rank (3 votes)
Sex & Nudity
Moderate
typical for an R-rated film
heavier than 64%
Profanity
Moderate
too few votes to rank (2 votes)
Alcohol & Drugs
Moderate
too few votes to rank (2 votes)
Frightening / Intense
Moderate
too few votes to rank (2 votes)

Point along a line to see a well-known title at that level.

Too few votes to rank this title overall (31 votes across 5 categories; ranking needs 10 in at least three).

Source: Midcredits content scores, 0 (none) to 100 (severe) per category, with each standing ranked against other films that have them.

What content warnings does Generation Um... have?

Not screened for content warnings yet.

Cast and crew

Who is in Generation Um...?

Cast

1 of the cast already had the standing of a top-10% working actor.

Keanu Reeves
as John
Established: A standing when this film came out that a top-10% working actor has today.Top draw: One of the 3 biggest draws in this cast: billing here weighted by career star power.
Bojana Novakovic
as Violet
Top draw: One of the 3 biggest draws in this cast: billing here weighted by career star power.
Adelaide Clemens
as Mia
Newcomer: A standing when this film came out that sits in the bottom quarter of working actors today.
Jake Hoffman
as Rob
Daniel Sunjata
as Charles
Sarita Choudhury
as Lily
Top draw: One of the 3 biggest draws in this cast: billing here weighted by career star power.
Karen Olivo
as Carrie Hines
Newcomer: A standing when this film came out that sits in the bottom quarter of working actors today.
Ashley Austin Morris
as Girl Date
Screen debut: No prior film or television role.
Michael Nathanson
as Bachelor Party Guy
Newcomer: A standing when this film came out that sits in the bottom quarter of working actors today.
Ivan Martin
as Bobby

Crew

More like this

What are movies like Generation Um...?

Movies like Generation Um... include Exposed (2016) and Permanent Vacation (1980), both films set in New York.

Balanced: every group counts the same, and production only breaks ties.

Explore by

What else shares a premise, people or place with Generation Um...?

742 other films share the rarest tag below, kind of film: hangout movie. Each tag opens Browse with the films that share it.