A Real Pain

I saw this film at the AFI film festival in Hollywood last week. By the time I got to this film, I was suffering from a bit of filmgoing overload, and chatting with someone in the audience before the film began, I almost forgot what I was I going to see! But I was so glad I got to see this one! As you know from the synopsis, Jesse Eisenberg wrote, directed and stars in this great film about 2 cousins' journey to Poland to see the land of their beloved grandmother. Eisenberg perfectly plays a role that he seems made for - an uptight, nervous and dedicated family man who always wants to do the right thing. Joining Eisenberg is Kieran Culkin who plays the polar opposite of Eisenberg - he is garrulous, open, and willing to break the rules, much to Eisenberg's chagrin. Culkin's character easily makes friends with his fellow travelers and guide - again much to Eisenberg's amazement (and sometimes annoyance). The story itself is very involving, and you will find yourself wanting to join them on their tour. Culkin may be in the running for an Oscar on this one and Eisenberg may get a nomination for screenwriting and/or direction. So, I highly recommend you check this one out as soon as you can.

I really enjoyed the movie for several reasons.

1. It moved right along and was short but satisfying for 1:30 hours run time.

2. Great screen play, direction and acting from Jessi Eisenberg. His role David was conflicted about his feelings for his troubled cousin Benji, and that felt very real and relatable.

3. Kieran Calkin plays Benji, a loud, emotional guy who isn't afraid of voicing his opinions and can be a burden to other people but wins them over because of his charm and heart. His acting was superb and very believable (we all know a guy like that in our lives).

4. It is a road movie and shows various sites of Poland and its dark history in a most unpretentious and natural way.

5. Supporting actors including Will Sharpe and Jennifer Gray were also amazing and the ensemble cast had very good chemistry.

I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good original human drama that is not over-dramatic and over-wrought which this movie wasn't.

I won't cover what others have already said. This isn't a comedy or a road movie and it's not some commentary on the horrors of war.

For me this quaint indie (feeling) flick is really an observation about living with someone with mental illness. If looked upon from this angle it is well observed and touching and uses its three acts to unfold all the different dynamics in the cousins relationships using the backdrop of the road trip and the visit to the concentration camp. It deliberately subverts expectations by not providing a defined ending (often the case in this situation) and the scenes often don't lead to expected outcomes. That's what life can be like when your are dealing with that issue.

For me this made the film an interesting (if flawed) study that was definitely worth the watch. YMMV.

I was really impressed by this movie. In my opinion it's a really original story. It's strength lies in it subtlety. It very accurately depicts the duality of people's character. The beauty and the shadow. I found it very interesting to see how what looked like "negative" behavior turned out to have some positive effect. How nothing is black and white. How being very direct also means being honest for example. It really makes you think.

The dynamics in the group were also interesting and heart-warming to watch. It shows how people can really connect over a short period of time.

Definitely worth the watch for those who are interested in the complexity of humans.

Two polar-opposite cousins, introverted, responsible, neurotic David and extroverted, seemingly-carefree Benji, fly to Poland as part of a Jewish history tour to visit significant cultural and historic sites, including a WW2 concentration camp. Their beloved, recently-deceased grandmother survived the Holocaust and they want to see where she lived. During the course of the tour their contrasting personalities start to cause friction between the two and past issues are rekindled.

Okay but underwhelming. A film that seems more about the journey than the destination, which is not in itself a bad thing - some great dramas have not had a powerful or profound conclusion but were fantastic in getting there. Unfortunately, here the journey is not entirely enjoyable nor engaging.

The film just seems to meander around for most of its duration. There's a few good moments and there's enough going on to maintain your interest but it never becomes riveting viewing.

Add in the fact that neither cousin is that interesting and Benji (played by Kieran Culkin) is downright annoying and the engagement levels are quite low too.

As mentioned, there are some good moments and passages of play though and the historic and cultural aspects of the tour are quite interesting and edifying. Not a must-see but interesting enough to be watchable.