A Real Pain is a dramedy written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg. David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin) are cousins. They’ve always had a close relationship. But Benji has had a rough time of it lately, so David decides to take him on a trip. Not the most upbeat trip to be sure. It’s to Poland. And most of the highlights are the Holocaust sites, but it is their heritage and they are also going to get to visit their recently deceased grandmother’s house, something that Benji has always wanted to do. And they’ll get to spend some quality time together.
As they tour the country Benji plays the clown, while David tries to keep him in check, apologizing for his inappropriate behavior to the others on their tour. Most of the others are looking to reconnect to their Jewish roots, including a recent divorcée played by Jennifer Grey and a Rwandan genocide survivor who is a new Jewish convert. They are let by a British historian tour guide who Benji taunts and questions at every turn. But little by little it becomes clear that his antics are covering some very deep pain and the tour group softens to him by the time they part.
And it seems the death of his grandmother was more than a huge blow for him. “She was my favorite person in the world,” he tells David who is all too aware of Benji’s fragility. Benji is teetering on the edge and David knows there is little he can do, but he is there and is telling Benji that is he there for him as loudly as he can. When they finally arrive at their Grandmother’s house and see what she left behind when she escaped to America, they are thankful for what she did and what she gave them. And when they get back to America, David reluctantly has to let Benji go, hoping that he knows how much he loves him and that he will reach out if he can. It is heartbreaking and very human.
Eisenberg has constructed a very sensitive script about emotional pain and how we deal with the people we love who are suffering. Culkin has the heavy lifting in the piece but Eisenberg’s steady care of his cousin comes through as the kind of love that is so necessary for people on the edge. And the way the script teeters between comedy and drama is extremely well done. I highly recommend this one!
In theaters. Streaming Dec 31st.