A Real Pain review

 

From Writer / Director Jesse Eisenberg who also stars alongside Kieran Clukin A Real Pain is a effortlessly witty story about mourning, learning to deal with loss and the love for ones family. The story follows a pair of cousins Benji and David played by Eisenberg and Culkin. After the death of their grandmother they set off on a journey off discovery to learn all about what she endured during the holocaust days before visiting her final resting place to pay their respects. It all takes place in Warsaw Poland and being shot on location it adds so much to the story being told. 

Eisenberg and Culkin are fantastic here with some real clever dialogue and funny moments peppered throughout. Eisenberg's David is the classic case of being socially awkward and anxiety fuelled, he struggles to fit in with large groups while Culkin's Benji is the polar opposite. His personality is big and he will interact and get to know anyone at anytime. He ends up leaving a pretty big impact on the tour group both he and David are with in a performance that is truly sensational as it is heartbreaking once you break it all down. 

A Real Pain won't be for everyone but I really did love every minute of it. The story is simple yet so effective as it pays respect to the past, the Jewish people and all they endured. Eisenberg and Culkin's chemistry is superb and overall this is such a well crafted and written movie by Jesse Eisenberg. By the time the credits begin to roll you'll be left with some questions of your own in an ending that is as somber and upsetting as it is fitting for the characters. A Real Pain is very effective in it's message and storytelling and is something I would highly recommend checking out.

★★★★