A Serious Man

So... yeah... I'm seeing this movie tonight, and I'm not quite sure about it. I'm SUPER hit-or-miss with the Coen Brothers, and am not sure I'm on board with this trailer. It's getting GREAT reviews (as much of their stuff does), but nothing really grips me. As far as a quick run-through of their films and my opinions:

*Raising Arizona (1987) - saw it FOREVER ago - wasn't amused. (I should probably see it again though)

*The Big Lebowski (1998) - only saw it a couple years ago - liked it, but am not signing up for LebowskiFest anytime soon.

*Oh Brother, Where Art Though? (2000) - REALLY liked it! I think part of it was the cast, part was the music, and part was the story being based on Homer's Odyssey.

* No Country For Old Men (2007) - OVERRATED!!! It was watchable, and the acting was GREAT! It was a well made film, but There Will Be Blood should have taken Best Picture FOR SURE!

*Burn After Reading (2008) - meh. I enjoyed some of the quirkiness of the film, and again, GREAT performances, but it just didn't resonate with me. Maybe it needs a second viewing, but I'm not sure I want to waste another 2 hours, just to be let down again.

OK, I know people are gonna say "Why isn't Fargo on that list?" Confession: I STILL haven't seen Fargo! (*runs and hides, while grabbing a baseball glove to catch the tomatoes*) I know, I'm a failure, but that seems to be an ongoing trend, AND one of the main reasons that I started this blog. THEN they made Intolerable Cruelty... REALLY Joel and Ethan? THAT'S the route you go? Romantic comedy? I tend to avoid those at ALL costs! I LOVE me some George Clooney (though I didn't used to back in the day), and I'm fine w/ Catherine Zeta Jones, but the Coens and romantic comedy??? I'm out! I also DO need to see Blood Simple and the Ladykillers, and I DID see their segment of Paris, je t'aime (and liked the film altogetherm but can't recall which was their segment), but overall, the Coen's are WAY more miss than hit for me!

So tonight, or maybe tomorrow, I'll report back on my thoughts. A Jewish dude and his dismal life just doesn't seem all that gripping, but I could be wrong. I DO like that the trailer doesn't spoil the plot though, and the head-pounding (literally) beat, but I'm not getting my hopes up. Maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised!

SCREEN CUTS TO BLACK -

CASEY

(confused, quietly to self)

Seriously?! What the hell?! Wow...

(sigh, slight irritated)

Eff you Coen brothers!

I think that's how I leave most Coen brothers films. This one threw me off though because I actually enjoyed it! I can never really tell if I overthink their films, or whether they completely fly over my head. Either way, they always create topics of discussion for me! The lead in A Serious Man, Michael Stuhlbarg, is pretty much an unknown, and is fantastic! Everyone in the film was SO good! So believable! I always enjoy going into movies that I know next to nothing about; movies in which the trailer doesn't give the ENTIRE thing away!

***SPOILERS***
It's been said that this sort of chronicles the story of Job from the Bible, where everything in his life falls apart, but he continues to stay faithful.  I get that. Larry Gopnik (Stuhlbarg) is a man of integrity; just a college professor, up for tenure, who is trying to do right by his unfaithful wife, his selfish daughter, his bullied, soon-to-be-bar mitzvahed son, and his socially awkward gambler brother. He has a Korean student who's trying to buy a grade, and his wife's lover who is tying to be his friend as if nothing's wrong.
(to be completed...)