'A Real Pain' Reviews: "a witty, funny and tender emotional journey"

         On November 1, 2024, Searchlight Pictures released 'A Real Pain', which has earned rave reviews from critics, currently holding at 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. In the film, "Mismatched cousins David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin) reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the odd-couple's old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history." But what did the critics say?

       Jack Martin of Film Feeder says, "The film certainly has the mannerisms of a standard road trip comedy... but Eisenberg manages to avoid a lot of the typical tropes with an underlying gentleness that cuts to the core of our two central travellers." Adding, "Some have tried over the years to find the humour in the horror, including Jerry Lewis’s infamous (and infamously unreleased) The Day the Clown Cried, but writer-director Jesse Eisenberg opts for a slightly different angle with his film A Real Pain, which ends up making all the difference. It all boils down to the simple fact that it isn’t the Holocaust that is funny, but rather people’s reactions to it, particularly those who might have descended from those unfortunate to have been inside one of those camps. That actually does make for some plentiful laughs in this tender and rather touching comedy-drama about what it is to trace one’s ancestry, and not being particularly jazzed about what they learn, either about their ancestor or even themselves."

       Brianna Zigler of AV Club notes, "Eisenberg’s screenplay deploys the right kind of wry, subtle humor at the right moments, and gut-wrenching heartache in others. On the other hand, there is not much formal daring to Eisenberg’s direction, though the evolution of the on-screen relationship between Benji and David isn’t really in need of flashy camerawork. Maybe Eisenberg is aware of his stylistic limitations, or maybe he’s more interested in softer, more personal filmmaking. A Real Pain suffers from some of the same issues as When You Finish Saving The World, in that Eisenberg shackles him to a low-key style of filmmaking and storytelling that doesn’t allow his work to stand out from countless other small, personal indie films about families with problems. Still, A Real Pain ends not with the cousins making promises to repair their relationship—as a lesser film might have—but something slightly more cynical. There is no simple catharsis to reckoning the horrors of the past with the eases of the present day; all you can do is choose how to live with it, and Eisenberg’s refusal to wrap his film in a neat little bow elevates his sophomore film into something almost as difficult as its subject material."

       Avi Offer of NYC Movie Guru praises the film, stating, "The screenplay by writer/director Jesse Eisenberg is a witty, funny and tender emotional journey. Eisenberg understands the concept that the root of comedy can often be found in tragedy. He keeps the story lean by beginning at the airport after David and Benji's grandmother died. There are no flashbacks to their experiences with her, but during a dinner with others in the tour group, a lot gets revealed about how Benji was closer to his grandmother than David was and how blunt she was. Based on the way that they describe her, she seems like kindred spirits with Maude from Harold & Maude. He also confides in them something very personal regarding Benji's suicide attempt. It's a brief scene and a moving one, but underdeveloped as if Eisenberg were scared to allow the film to get too dark and unflinching. The evolving dynamics between David and Benji throughout the tour feels true-to-life, though, especially when they banter. Kudos to Eisenberg for providing them with different personalities. Benji comes across as an annoying, rude jerk as well as a bad influence initially, but there's more to him than meets the eye. He even has no shame in criticizing the tour guide, James (Will Sharpe). To be fair, much of the dialogue is on-the-nose and lacks subtlety. However, it never becomes maudlin or cheesy. Jennifer Grey has a supporting role as Marcia, one of the tour group members. Her character, though, just like everyone besides David and Benji, are underwritten and forgettable. Compared to Treasure, which has a similar plot, A Real Pain is much more captivating and heartfelt. In a double feature, it would be the A-movie while Treasure would be the vastly inferior B-movie. Also, Eiseberg deserves to be commended for keeping the running time at 90 minutes which means that he grasps the concept of restraint and that less is more."

Photo by Andrew Neel on Unsplash