A Serious Man

2009 • 105 minutes

About this movie

Academy Award-winning directors Joel and Ethan Coen return to their comedy roots with this original and darkly humorous story about one ordinary man's quest to become a serious man. Physics professor Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) can't believe his life: His wife is leaving him for his best friend, his unemployed brother won't move off the couch, someone is threatening his career, his kids are a mystery and his neighbor is tormenting him by sunbathing nude. Struggling to make sense of it all, Larry consults three different rabbis and their answers lead him on a twisted journey of faith, family, delinquent behavior and mortality in the film critics rave is "seriously awesome!"

(Michael Hogan, Vanity Fair)

Ratings and reviews

I dont normally leave a review but this movie was so self indulgent and with zero entertainment value I felt I should make an effort to call it out

This is one of the Coens most underrated movies. It's my favourite of theirs since 2001's The Man Who Wasn't There (which is also hugely under-rated) and one of my favourites of all time. It's hugely watchable, with great characterization as always (Sy Ableman is a class Coen creation), a great look, great music. But it's got a depth, it's one of those movies which has (appropriately) serious stuff to say about The Human Condition — but it doesn't hand it to you on a plate, it says "life is full of mysteries, let's explore them, and maybe try to make sense of some stuff", and each time you watch it you get something new from it. The prologue, an apparently unconnected folk story with dialogue in Yiddish, sets it up brilliantly; and the ending (which I won't spoil) is fantastic too.

This is a great film....dry humour, intriguing plot, excellent cast!