Directed and written by: Jesse Eisenberg
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Kieran Culkin, Will Sharpe, Daniel Oreskes, Liza Sadovy, Kurt Egyiawan, and Jennifer Grey
Runtime: 90 minutes
‘A Real Pain’: Eisenberg and Culkin shine in this road-trip dramedy that addresses the pain of loss and everyday struggles
Jesse Eisenberg has acted in films for, believe it or not, 22 years. (How is that possible?)
This 41-year-old has starred in a zombie-apocalypse comedy. Eisenberg played Superman’s most prominent adversary and Facebook’s founder, among dozens of other roles.
He stepped behind the camera for “A Real Pain”, his second directorial feature, a road-trip picture. Jesse writes and stars in his film as well, alongside Kieran Culkin, who resembles Charlie Day’s long-lost brother during this production.
David (Eisenberg) and Benji (Culkin) Kaplan are first cousins who travel to Poland to visit their late grandmother’s original home in the said country and the nearby Majdanek concentration camp. Their grandma was also a Holocaust survivor.
David and Benji are a bit of an “Odd Couple” with David filling the Felix-like role, and Benji is similar to Oscar.
The two meet at a New York City airport. Benji has a longer commute because he lives in Binghamton, a small Upstate city 180 miles from The Big Apple, but we watch David semi-panic over getting to the airport and meeting his cousin as he darts about NYC.
It turns out that Benji was already sitting in the airport for a few hours to relax and people-watch, but, of course, he didn’t return David’s messages. This is a bit irresponsible on Benji’s part, which is a preview of this 30-something’s nature.
Never fear, though.
They make the flight to Warsaw and meet their small tour group. The handful of visitors is led by a plucky, responsible guide named James (Will Sharpe). They plan to explore the city, see Holocaust sites, the said concentration camp, and more.
Eisenberg introduces the other travelers, and they all seem like pleasant tourists without idiosyncrasies, odd traps, or eccentric movie tropes, which is refreshing. They include an older couple, Mark (Daniel Oreskes) and Diane (Liza Sadovy), a recently single 50-something, Marcia (Jennifer Grey), and a 30-something man, Eloge (Kurt Egyiawan), who recently converted to Judaism.
Rather than evoke slapstick comedy and outrageous moments with the other sightseers, Eisenberg portrays them as observers of Benji’s unpredictable behavior and the stress it causes David. The others are along for the ride but feel missing when not on screen. Still, the energy and focus usually land squarely on Benji and David. However, admittedly, this critic was looking for more development of Marcia solely because of my Generation X connection to Grey.
It's difficult to recall a scene where David, Benji, or both are not on screen, and that’s a good thing. Benji’s slacker, adrift personality allows him to get by through life while crashing in his mother’s basement, but that outlook won’t always cut it when traveling abroad. Schedules need to be kept through group meals, train rides, and sightseeing. Getting along to get along with the others becomes paramount, even if the Kaplans are only on the road for a few days.
Eisenberg perfectly plays characters who dress into a full wardrobe of anxiety, and he nicely casts himself as David.
David frequently must save face over Benji’s quirks, outbursts of disapproval, and impulsive wishes. They share space in a hotel room, are joined at the hip on their travels, and grieve over their lost grand-matriarch, but the fellas also want to bond during the trip. The love is there, but everyday life creates hiccups, including Benji borrowing David’s phone and taking it in the bathroom while showering and finding an inventive way to score marijuana in Poland.
Still, Benji’s heart is in the right place, and Culkin delivers a beautifully nuanced performance with this troubled, layered character. Benji copes with falling behind in the game of life, as his struggles run deeper than occasionally sleeping in late or questioning James’ itinerary in front of the group. This is especially true when comparing himself to David, who has a stable, white-collar job, a wife, and a child in NYC.
“A Real Pain” runs for a thrifty 90 minutes, and the screenplay includes a great deal of emotion with the purpose of this overseas trek but also with the cousins’ relationship with one another and their stations in life. Eisenberg doesn’t go over the top with these parallel dramatic tracks, as authenticity runs deep for these men to reach their roots and each other.
Jeff’s ranking
3.5/4 stars
