‘A Serious Man’Directors: Joel and Ethan CoenStarring: Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred MelamedGrade: A

The Coen brothers’ newest production is their most personal work to date, an expectedly brilliant study of guilt, redemption and responsibility rooted in Judaic culture. Set in the Coens’ hometown of St. Louis Park, Minn., in the summer of 1967, ‘A Serious Man’ is the filmmaking duos’ ode to the often-overlooked trials and tribulations of remaining a dignified member of society, on religious and secular levels. Brimming with provocative philosophical insight and a litany of captivating performances, the Coens’ hauntingly cynical passion project is utterly unforgettable.

College professor Larry Gopnik’s (Michael Stuhlbarg) idyllic existence is coming to pieces. His wife, Judith (Sari Lennick), confesses to him her love for the much older Sy Ableman (Fred Melamed) and demands a divorce. His son, Danny (Aaron Wolff), and daughter, Sarah (Jessica McManus), are altogether untamable, ignorant of their father’s afflictions, while his brother, Arthur (Richard Kind), suffers with a cyst on his neck and an even worse inferiority complex.

As Larry nervously awaits judgment from the tenure review committee at school, he debates whether or not to accept a bribe from a struggling student, an especially tempting offer considering his financial troubles. As he ponders these dilemmas, the scope of his turmoil overcomes him and forces him to reconsider his religious responsibilities, his faith and occasional failure to honor his creed.

Eschewing Hollywood code for their most stripped-down production in more than 20 years, the Coens opted to cast performers better known for their work in the theater, or lack of work whatsoever, rather than the box-office titans who typically headline their productions.

After working with seven Academy Award-winning actors and actresses in their four most recent films alone – George Clooney, Tom Hanks and Catherine Zeta-Jones among them – the more anonymous cast of ‘A Serious Man,’ headlined by Tony Award nominee Michael Stuhlbarg (‘The Pillowman’), is refreshingly uncorrupted. As the tormented Larry Gopnik, Stuhlbarg is astonishing, offering the most textured performance of the year thus far in his first major film role.

If it is too soon to compare the picture to ‘No Country for Old Men,’ ‘Fargo’ or ‘Blood Simple’ (1984), this is certainly the Coens’ densest work yet, a noted departure for the filmmaking tandem famous for their avoidance of philosophical reflection. The questions that the film poses are remarkably complex and even disturbing, as the Coens assert that a Jew’s misfortunes are inherited. Such ideology is suggested by the prologue, set in the distant past, in which a Jewish woman (Yelena Shmulenson) stabs a kind old man whom she believes to be a ‘Dybbuk,’ that villainous, wandering spirit from Jewish folklore. The women’s murderous actions precipitate the unfortunate cataclysms that befall Larry, and that the average Jew – yours truly included – assumes are ingrained from birth.

At times a stunningly controversial depiction of the Jewish faith, the film’s narrative energy is derived from the filmmakers’ conflicted religious sentiments. Indeed, the film is borderline misanthropic, as most every character is downright deplorable, from the moronic, witless rabbis down to Larry’s pot smoking, aggravatingly irresponsible son. What rescues the picture from the throes of such bitterness, however, is the artistry with which the Coens decry these sickeningly unpleasant characters with their trademark wit and satirical verve, sparing only their precious protagonist.

The Coens’ most psychologically complex and probing work yet belongs near the top of their celebrated canon. Indeed, the film may well warrant inclusion among the most acclaimed depictions of Judaism in the cinema, alongside the likes of ‘Exodus’ (1960) and ‘Schindler’s List’ (1993). An endlessly debatable film, the picture’s defining message transcends spiritual reasoning and unites each and every viewer, regardless of religious affiliation: Sometimes bad things happen to good people.

smlittma@syr.edu

Published on November 11, 2009 at 12:00 pm