Sharon Sutton

I know films are subjective but what was I watching, turns out a Jordan Peele wannabe. Vampires I can take but stage Irish ones, sorry couldn’t do it.

‘A Real Pain’ might not be everyone’s cup of tea but it was mine. The tale of two cousins on a journey of discovery in Poland to connect to their Jewish roots resonates as the implication is always there if history had been slightly different neither would exist. The two carry this weight in different ways with a brilliant Kieran Culkin acting as if boundaries and social norms are for other people and Jesse Eisenberg, restrained and loyal even to his own detriment at times going along for the ride. Added to the mix is a tour group including an underused Jennifer Grey and a guide who has the skinny on everything but the latte of nothing, a clear contrast to his Jewish tour group but even he, thanks to Culkin, goes on his own mini catharsis. I felt liberated and profoundly moved by this film, it’s short at an hour and a half but every frame is necessary and Eisenberg’s tight direction kept the focus where it needed to be.