03-18-2015, 10:25 AM
Ebert gave this 4 out of 4 stars, many other critics give it high marks, it’s on the 366weirdmovies list, and I hated it. The Coen brothers owe me one. Actually two, because I also didn’t like Barton Fink, also on the 366weirdmovies list.
Which begs the question: Is it just me? Do I just not “get” the Coen brothers?
I loved Blood Simple (1984), Fargo (1996), The Big Lebowski (1998), and had considerable respect for No Country for Old Men (2007) and some other of their films. But wow. A Serious Man is like one long anxiety dream. The passive protagonist is surrounded by assholes from his kids to his wife, to relatives, neighbors, colleagues at university (he’s a physics professor), lawyers-- The list goes on. Who in their right mind would want to sit through something like this?
Usually, when watching a film, there’s a character or two that you become attached to, and you look forward to seeing them in a scene. There’s no one like that in this film. I loathed everyone in this film. Yes, I initially felt compassion for the protagonist (I’d hate being in his shoes), but soon lost patience with his enabling passivity.
A Serious Man deals with faith, and you're immersed in Judaism (a Jewish community, the customs, words, etc.). Some people have said you need to be Jewish to appreciate it. No, even that wouldn’t help. It’s bleak and pointless, monotonous and simplistic.
Critics seems split down the center on A Serious Man. Here’s a quote by one that pretty much sums up my feelings:
“The movie raises more questions about the Coens’ storytelling depth and competence than it does about suffering and faith… ‘A Serious Man’ has the cramped intensity of a mid-period Ingmar Bergman movie remade by a couple of secular-Jewish comedians.”–Michael Sragow, The Baltimore Sun.
I would only add that there's nothing funny about this movie, unless you're amused by another person's suffering.
Which begs the question: Is it just me? Do I just not “get” the Coen brothers?
I loved Blood Simple (1984), Fargo (1996), The Big Lebowski (1998), and had considerable respect for No Country for Old Men (2007) and some other of their films. But wow. A Serious Man is like one long anxiety dream. The passive protagonist is surrounded by assholes from his kids to his wife, to relatives, neighbors, colleagues at university (he’s a physics professor), lawyers-- The list goes on. Who in their right mind would want to sit through something like this?
Usually, when watching a film, there’s a character or two that you become attached to, and you look forward to seeing them in a scene. There’s no one like that in this film. I loathed everyone in this film. Yes, I initially felt compassion for the protagonist (I’d hate being in his shoes), but soon lost patience with his enabling passivity.
A Serious Man deals with faith, and you're immersed in Judaism (a Jewish community, the customs, words, etc.). Some people have said you need to be Jewish to appreciate it. No, even that wouldn’t help. It’s bleak and pointless, monotonous and simplistic.
Critics seems split down the center on A Serious Man. Here’s a quote by one that pretty much sums up my feelings:
“The movie raises more questions about the Coens’ storytelling depth and competence than it does about suffering and faith… ‘A Serious Man’ has the cramped intensity of a mid-period Ingmar Bergman movie remade by a couple of secular-Jewish comedians.”–Michael Sragow, The Baltimore Sun.
I would only add that there's nothing funny about this movie, unless you're amused by another person's suffering.
I'm nobody's pony.
