The transition from actor to director isn’t an easy one. For every Greta Gerwig or Jordan Peele there’s a Chris Pine (see Poolman). Jesse Eisenberg leaned more toward the latter camp with his 2022 feature debut When You Finish Saving the World, which was received fairly at best. But after seeing his new film, A Real Pain, you’ll heavily reconsider what you think of Eisenberg as a director. A Real Pain wears its heart firmly on its sleeve, using the central dynamic between cousins David (Eisenberg) and Benji Kaplan (Kieran Culkin) to explore generational guilt, lost connections, and the healing process of moving forward. And instead of coming off as too overbearing, all of these heavy themes are impressively wrapped up in a warm blanket of comedy and human insight.
David and Benji have not seen each other for months. The estranged Jewish cousins reunite when their beloved grandmother passes away, leaving them a fund to go on a heritage trip through Poland to see where she grew up before she was forced to flee during WWII. After general awkwardness, the two begin to bond once again, joining a “Holocaust tour” group led by the eager James (Will Sharpe). Seeing the places their people once lived is a pleasant experience at first, but it slowly becomes overwhelming as they’re constantly reminded of the atrocities of the Holocaust. If that wasn’t enough already, painful memories between the two cousins begin to resurface.
For a movie like this, the cast must be up to snuff. Writer-director Jesse Eisenberg assembles a bang-up ensemble to bring this very tender story to life. Will Sharpe (The White Lotus) is immensely likable as the knowledgeable, if somewhat aloof, tour guide. Liza Sadovy (Sweeney Todd) and Daniel Oreskes (Law & Order) hit their marks in the roles of a curmudgeonly old couple. It’s also always nice to see Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing) back on the screen. Her turn as a quietly suffering single mother indicates why she’s been in this industry for so long. Meanwhile, Rwandan genocide survivor/recent Judaism convert Eloge (Kurt Egyiawan) manages moments of emotional poignancy. The real heart and soul of the film, though, can be seen between Jesse Eisenberg and fresh Golden Globe/Emmy-winner Kieran Culkin (Succession).
Jesse Eisenberg portrays his usual neurotic self. However, there’s a deep well of resentment and trauma hiding beneath the surface. Likewise, Kieran Culkin’s initial demeanor betrays what’s going on behind his eyes. Culkin brings the likability up to staggering levels when we first meet him. He’s quirky and energetic, the kind of guy that will light up the room. His innate affability as a performer and a series of hilarious one-liners and oddball character traits, courtesy of Eisenberg’s script, contrast him brilliantly with his co-star. How can you not love the kind of weirdo who sits in the airport for hours just to people-watch and saves his cousin a yogurt in his pocket for lunch? Yet, there’s a struggle with mental illness he’s eventually unable to suppress. There’s so much unspoken between them, and it can’t be that way forever.
The way A Real Pain unfolds is beautifully delicate. Cinematographer Michael Dymek (EO) shoots the gorgeous towns of Warsaw and Lublin, as well as the Polish countryside, with great affection that mirrors the reverence the tour group has. In a moment where David and Benji are eating chips and watching television after smoking a joint, their hotel room takes on the appearance of a safe haven. As their tour goes to darker places, such as a gravesite, the proceedings take a more somber turn. Benji’s lashing out at the tour guide for talking over him trying to connect with the location and a meltdown on a train where he points out the irony that his people were herded like cattle in trains instead of eating nice meals in a premium car digs at the seldom explored topic of generational guilt.
For anyone, not necessarily just of Jewish heritage, but those whose predecessors have gone through unspeakable emotional pain, there’s a sense of survivor’s anguish. Especially seeing those sights firsthand brings forth some painful, often confusing gut reactions. A near-silent sequence where the group visits the Majdanek concentration camp might stir some of those emotions in the audience. More than anything, though, the side effect of this emotional trip is that it causes David and Benji to confront what’s going on between them. In a devastating monologue at the dinner table, while Benji is in the restroom, David lays out his complicated emotions regarding what Benji has gone through and how it’s affected their relationship and himself.
The conclusion that A Real Pain comes to is that that agony cannot be ignored. It must be felt. It must be addressed. That’s the only way it can be addressed. Both in their reactions to the trip and to them beginning the process of healing their relationship, Jesse Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin achieve an uncanny verisimilitude. Whenever independent dramas try to hew as close to life as possible, it sometimes comes off as mimicry. Here, it’s simply truth. Although artists don’t make art for prizes, it’ll be a shame if these two don’t get some awards recognition in the near future.
A Real Pain doesn’t reinvent the wheel. Rather, it taps into the common experience of connecting with the struggles of our past and trying to move through the aching of our present. Filmmaker Jesse Eisenberg has a distinctly humanist lens that reaches deep into our hearts. It’s also another notch in the already impressive belt of executive producers Emma Stone and Dave McCary’s production company Fruit Tree. Moreover, it’s a tender character study that, through its combination of drama and comedy, dares to be completely earnest in how it portrays that subject matter. Sometimes, the bravest thing to do is to embrace pain, and that’s exactly what Eisenberg’s second film does.
