A Real Pain

A REAL PAIN (15)

D: Jesse Eisenberg

Searchlight / Topic / Fruit Tree / Rego Park / Extreme Emotions (Ewa Puszczynska, Jennifer Semler, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Ali Herting & Dave McCary)

Poland/US 🇵🇱🇺🇸 2024

90 mins

Comedy/Drama

W: Jesse Eisenberg

DP: Michal Dymek

Ed: Robert Nassau

Jesse Eisenberg (David Kaplan), Kieran Culkin (Benji Kaplan), Will Sharpe (James), Jennifer Gray (Marcia), Kurt Egyiawan (Eloge)

Jesse Eisenberg’s tragicomedy, which he wrote and directed, has a clear semi-autobiographical feel to it, starring Eisenberg & Culkin as two mismatched cousins who travel to Poland on a tour around areas of Jewish history and heritage, including the remnants of the Auschwitz concentration camp, as a tribute to their recently deceased grandmother.

It’s partially a buddy-buddy road trip comedy, but has a heavily dramatic undertone throughout.

Eisenberg practically plays himself as an overly neurotic type, whilst Kieran Culkin has lots of fun as the outspoken, rather brash Benji, resulting in a chalk-and-cheese double act between the two principals.

It does possess a good screenplay with realistic dialogue, characters and scenarios, and Culkin is genuinely impressive in what is effectively the co-lead, but I don’t quite understand how he completely swept the Best Supporting Actor category at practically every awards show on the circuit.  It’s a fine performance for sure, but there were other supporting performances I considered stronger in 2024.

Nevertheless, A Real Pain is really good movie.

7/10