A Serious Man
A Serious Man written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen is their new venture after the Oscar-winning film No Country For Old Men. A Serious Man is the fourteenth film by the filmmakers and the film is already catching the attention of the audience for being a wonderful entertainer and mind stirring at the same time.
The film is character centric, which is quite similar to Coens’ earlier film The Big Lebowski in which the story revolves around the central character who is just an ordinary guy with unending problems in life. In A Serious Man the story is focussed on a college physics professor who is married with two children and resides in the suburbs of Minnesota.
The story is about Larry Gopnik who is the central character of the film and Michael Stuhlbarg plays the role. Gopnik’s life is very complex and he is surrounded by all kinds of problems and normally one would expect such a character to be a loser, depressed or a hopeless guy but Gopnik is optimistic man who believes that nothing else can get worst anymore and is always in search of happiness.
Gopnik’s wife is about ditch him for his best friend and this could have been a major disaster in somebody else’s life and then his son studies in Hebrew school and is crazy about rock music and he steals money to pay the drug peddlers. Gopnik’s daughter steals money to repair her nose and his brother-in-law is a pest of the first order.
In his work front too Gopnik faces many challenges; one of his South Korean students makes an attempt to bribe for a better grade and later his father threatens Gopnik. To add to his woes the committee has kept him hanging in the air; he is still not sure if he could continue his tenure or not. And there is also his neighbour’s wife who is a sex maniac.
Michael Stuhlbarg in A Serious Man
Well, one would think the only help a man could get is psychiatric help but Gopnik seeks the advice of the rabbis but does not find any solution. And when the audience is taken to the level of thinking where they eagerly wait for a miraculous solution to Gopnik’s problems the filmmakers will take you by a surprise with a climax that you hardly expected.
The film does not run on a serious note; it actually has rich humour that makes you laugh all through but then you cannot term it a straightforward comedy either. And this aspect of the film is what it gives the edge and the filmmakers deserve a huge round of applause for their skill to have dealt with the subject so uniquely.
Every role is superbly etched and the actors have done a splendid job, especially Michael Stuhlbarg is simply outstanding as Larry and he deserves an Oscar for sure. The cinematography, acting, screenplay and direction all fall in place to present you a beautiful film that you will remember for a long time.
Don’t miss it.
| Film | A Serious Man |
|---|---|
| Cast | Michael Stuhlbarg as Larry Gopnik Richard Kind as Uncle Arthur Fred Melamed as Sy Ableman Sari Lennick as Judith Gopnik Aaron Wolff as Danny Gopnik Jessica McManus as Sarah Gopnik Peter Breitmayer as Mr. Brandt Brent Braunschweig as Mitch Brandt David Kang as Clive Park |
| Director | Ethan Coen, Joel Coen |
| Writers | Ethan Coen, Joel Coen |
| Producers | Ethan Coen, Joel Coen |
| Runtime | 1 Hour 45 Minutes |
| Rating | 4/5 |
Posted on Sunday, October 11th, 2009 at 9:02 am