Review of A Serious Man (2009) by Felipe S — 24 Feb 2011

Bumping this one up to a 10 after reviewing.

The Coens' here manage to perhaps top their own excellent NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN in making a film that seems as nihilistic, but comes by it perhaps more honestly. The puzzle and pain of Larry Gopnik's (Michael Stuhlbarg) life has led many to call this a modern day retelling of Job, but with even less resolution. The film isn't really concerned with why there is suffering or if there is a God; Hashem's existence is taken for granted. Rather, the question of existence is "What does he want from me?" or even more scary "Does it really matter?" The film presents pieces that seem to add up to something, but the answer keeps on slipping away. The Coens may be having us on, but in a way that repeats the themes of the film. There is no way of knowing the answer, down to those astonishing final frames. The principle of uncertainty, introduced early in the film with Schroedinger's famous cat, becomes a kind of guiding metaphor as Larry navigates the limits of 1960s Jewish faith. The film is funny and dark, but prompts further questions rather than just have us throw up our hands and proclaim it finished. The acting (primarily unknown actors) is uniformly strong and Roger Deakin's cinematography is impeccable. The Coens are at the peak of their craft, both storytelling-wise and cinematically, and it's a treat.