Getting Serious…Coen Brothers’ Style
This man is serious.
A SERIOUS MAN (2009/ IN THEATERS) I’ve now seen it twice. Joel and Ethan Coen’s much admired—and deservedly so—new film which is partly a modern version of the Book of Job, partly a tribute to their suburban Minnesota Jewish up-bringing, and totally a Coen film. It’s funny, dark, well written, beautifully shot, tightly edited and impossible to forget. The acting is superb and the attention to detail is fantastic. The ending has spawned an ongoing discussion over the network–just Google “A Serious Man Ending” and stand back–there are a lot of opinions. Roger Ebert calls this a “wince-wince” comedy. A. O. Scott of the New York Times says “You don’t have to be Jewish to like this movie, but it will hurt more if you are.” Suggested pairing: Crimes and Misdemeaners (1989, Woody Allen)
Grade: A+
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