Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
After starring in three of last year’s Best Picture nominees, Michael Stuhlbarg has become something of a fixture on the cinematic scene. Before he was comforting his teen son and running the New York Times, however, Stuhlbarg starred in A Serious Man, a strange, dark comedy written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. It’s a singular, offbeat film, one that asks for multiple viewings. Luckily, it’s streaming on Netflix – so you can stream the flick (and attempt to decipher it) as many times as you want.
Stuhlbarg stars as Larry Gopnik, a Jewish physics professor who prides himself on his moral compass and seemingly picture-perfect family life. When things begin to unravel all at once, however, he finds himself driven totally crazy while trying to find meaning in every incident. With an angsty teenage daughter gunning for a nose job and a weed-smoking son who gets high at his own bar mitzvah, it seems like Larry is dealing with pretty standard parental woes – but that’s just the start of it. Will Larry be granted tenure? Why does his wife want a divorce? And why does her new lover insist on the three of them existing on good terms? How come Larry is stuck in an exhausting back-and-forth with a student trying to bribe him for better grades? What is really wrong with Larry’s brother Arthur? Will his neighbor ever respect the property line between their yards? With every question he asks and every rabbi he visits, Larry only seems to emerge more confused, frustrated, and desperate than ever before – and that’s what makes A Serious Man such a fascinating watch.
Set in 1967 small-town Minnesota and gorgeously shot by Roger Deakins, A Serious Man is an atmospheric black comedy, perfectly capturing all the neuroses of suburbia that contribute to Larry’s slow undoing. We’re asked uncomfortable questions and granted half-answers just as Larry is, wondering why God is moving in such a way – and what the end game could be. Do things happen for a reason? Or is it all this chaos just the result of an indifferent universe? There’s no way for us to know. And the sooner we come to terms with that, the sooner we can live more pleasant lives.
Throughout the film, no matter how bleak things may seem, there’s a droll, dry sense of humor to it all, which speaks to the Coens’ enduring ability to make us squirm and laugh simultaneously. Stuhlbarg is (unsurprisingly) extraordinary, offering us someone to root for and sympathize with even at his most pathetic. It’s difficult to make a film that’s both hilarious and profoundly personal, but with A Serious Man, the Coens have done exactly this – and more. It’s the kind of film that hits home differently with everyone, a kind of journey you must embark on alone.
Whether this is your first go round with A Serious Man or your fifth, you’re bound to find something that both befuddles and bemuses you. We may never know the real meaning behind anything that happens to poor Larry (or anyone else), but that’s half the fun of the film – and life. Isn’t it?
