A Real Pain Review – Excellent Story Driven Performances, Funny, Entertaining

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Category: Film

Published on Thursday, 31 October 2024 14:46

Written by Janet Walker

A Real Pain, from Searchlight Pictures recently held a special screening at the AFI Film Festival, treating audiences to the story of two mismatched cousins who reunite to honor their beloved grandmother by journeying to her native Poland.

The film begins with a wide pan of the airport and settles in on Benji, played by Kieran Culkin, and immediately we cut to David, played by Jesse Eisenberg, who is running late. In the next three to four minutes, he leaves at least six messages for Benji, and we understand immediately, David is overanxious about being stuck in New York traffic and missing his flight.

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Once they meet up, Benji explains when they arrive in Poland, he has a special enhancement for their trip, which is understood. David believes he has packed the weed in his luggage, and he spends the entire trip worried they will be stopped at customs. Once they reach the hotel, he finally understands he mailed the weed to the hotel, of course in David's name.

This begins the Poland trip. The cousins are as mismatched as their tour group, led by James played by Will Sharpe, newly single Marica, played by Jennifer Grey, recent Judism convert Eloge, played by Kurt Egyiawan, and married couple, Mark, played by Daniel Oreskes, and Diane, played by Liza Sadovy.  

A Real Pain is a buddy trip film that winds its way through Poland, and for the limited time they interact with the group. We understand traveling is stressful, especially as the cousins who were once close, have not seen each other in some time, and when they begin to talk about their feelings we understand life has thrown Benji more curves than most.

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However, both are manic. We see Benji exhibits a bi-polar personality, and at times he is the life of the party, the good guy, kind, and supportive, and at other times coupled with the tragedy of the history, as their grandmother whom they were here to honor, escaped Nazi Poland, he would be hit him with severe depression, and he would lash out at the group. David would be left to clean up the bad behavior with profuse apologies. Minutes later, Benji would do something charming, and the group would love him again.

The group begins with a walking tour through Warsaw. The first stop is the WWII War Memorial dedicated to Polish soldiers, and at this time Benji is the life of the party, and the group allows him to interject a bit of lighthearted fun in what has been called the Holocaust tour, and soon everyone is taking on a character from of the statue. David, who does not join them, is left juggling the many cellphones and snapping the pictures. Eisenberg personifies this moment with clumsiness and neurosis. His brand of dry, deadpanned, humor is genuinely funny.

And our tour guide James explains some of the Warsaw ghetto has been preserved, and then the trip takes a more solemn turn and as they reach the oldest known Jewish grave in Europe, Benji's manic mood takes over and he lashes explaining these are more than simply graves, and history, these are real people, and essentially they are standing on hallowed grounds and could you stop with the stats.

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Of course, with bi-polar, the pendulum swings and soon he is back to his charming, care-free, and loveable self. The worst of course is yet to come as the group speeds through the beautiful countryside on their way to the tour of the concentration camp. Culkin captures these bi-polar swings with authenticity and the charm segways that move the needle back to normal.

For many who will never see the Poland and others who will not visit the darker side of history, Eisenberg has shown audiences the truth, and through the script explains survivors' guilt that still plagues and is heightened as they travel. The script is sharp, witty, and well-written and the ensemble captured the sincere, zany, and sad moments with truthfulness.

Director, writer Jesse Eisenberg is stepping into a path paved by quintessential New York Jewish director, Woody Allen, bringing a new generation of Jewish neurosis experiences to the screen.

A Real Pain opens Friday, November 1, 2024. See it.

Classified Review – Slow Start, Strong Finish, Entertaining

Country: U.S.

Language: English.

Runtime: 90 minutes.

Director: Jesse Eisenberg.

Producer: Save McCary, Ali Herting, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg, Jennifer Semler, Ewa Puszczynska, Will Sharpe.

Writer: Jesse Eisenberg.

Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Kieran Culkin, Will Sharpe, Jennifer Grey, Liza Sadovy, Kurt Egyiawan, Daniel Oreskes.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation’s top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays, "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and the International Federation of Journalists.