October 30, 2009

Director: Joel and Ethan Coen

Starring: Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind

Release Date: October 2, 2009 (limited)

There’s no denying that the Coen brothers have been churning out quality pictures since they made their debut in 1984 with Blood Simple.  Among my favorite Coen brother efforts are Fargo and The Big Lebowski; in my estimation, these two movies fairly represent their body of work, which typically probes the darkly absurd, the soberingly serious, and the riotously hilarious. So it was with great excitement that I visited the one and only indie theater in town that was showing their newest release, A Serious Man.

It was a very strange viewing experience.  Though there are certainly universal themes at work—namely the blind allegiance to cultural traditions and what it means to adapt to change—I often felt alienated from what was happening on screen.  This, I think, is directly connected to the fact that I’m not Jewish. 

Here’s the story: Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) is a professor of physics at an unnamed Midwestern university in the 1960s, and his life is slowly deteriorating before his eyes.  Specifically, his wife has just announced her intention to obtain a “Ghet”—a document that would allow Larry and his wife Judith to legally divorce by way of an accepted Jewish ritual.  Judith, it seems, is planning on marrying their longtime friend Sy Ableman.  In the midst of all this, Larry is approached by one of his students who’s upset over having received a failing grade in his course. The student tries to bribe Larry by leaving an envelope filled with cash on his desk, and, after a brief confrontation, refuses to admit that he was the one who left the envelope.  This student’s father threatens to sue Larry if his son doesn’t receive a passing grade, and, in a humorous culture clash that beautifully illustrates what’s happening to Larry’s world, he refuses.  Heaped on top of this is the fact that Arthur, Larry’s brother, is living with Larry’s family in their modest ranch home because of a sebaceous cyst and a series of bad decisions that has left him unemployed.

If it sounds like a lot to digest, it is.  In typical Coen fashion, though, everything that’s here has a purpose—nothing is left to chance, and though it become a little intricate and hard to sift through at times, the various themes at work are cleverly highlighted through the pervasive use of symbolism.  

Aside from the troubles Larry faces with his former student, he’s also got to contend with a next door neighbor, Mr. Brant, who embodies the “good ole’ American way.”  He allows his son to skip school so the two can hunt deer together.  They play catch in the back yard.  In fact, Mr. Brant and his son do all kinds of things that Larry can only dream about in terms of his own family.

Danny, Larry’s son, is about as distanced as one can be from his father.  Danny, reflecting the onset of the modern age in obvious ways, constantly complains about the TV reception, and he spends his afternoons smoking weed with a buddy from school.  He’s the direct antithesis to the strict Jewish regimen that Larry and Judith believe will help Danny become a well respected man of the community.  This is evident from the very first time we see Danny.  Sitting in his Hebrew class, he has a portable radio hidden behind a book as his teacher drones on about various guttural pronunciations.  The thin wire hanging from his ear is belting the Jefferson Airplane classic “Somebody to Love,” and this serves as a nice contrast to the rigid characters scrawled across the blackboard that are arbitrary and virtually meaningless to Danny (this is also nicely personified in the form of a bully who is in constant pursuit).

Symbolism and subtext aside, a story that’s so steeped in Jewish culture can be hard to penetrate for those who have little to no experience with the faith.  I understand the Coen brothers’ decision to do this (and I think it lends an enormous amount of credibility and realism to the production), but I often felt as if I was being “left out of the joke,” so to speak.  The usual dry humor that has defined so many Coen brothers films is, of course, present, but many of the jokes revolve around Judiasm; because of this, a gnawing apprehension was manifested that I would never develop a full appreciation for Larry’s situation.

All of this makes A Serious Man particularly difficult to rate.  On the one hand, it demonstrates the usual brilliance we’ve come to expect from these filmmakers; on the other, it can, at times, be a little difficult to dig in to.  In the end, though, I can certainly say that I think it’s worth your time, as any cultural unfamiliarity ultimately melts in the face of scenarios that just about all of us can relate to in one way or another.

out of 5

–Chris Flowers

Rated R for language, some sexuality/nudity and brief violence.

Check out the trailer for A Serious Man:

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