A Serious Man

This is one of the movies I wanted to make sure I saw before the Academy Awards. I have to start by saying that I'm a huge Coen Brothers fan- I think they're some of the most consistently excellent filmmakers of this era. And, happily, A Serious Man did not disappoint.

The film is a continuation (or perhaps an expansion on) a theme present in many if not all of the Coen's movies- the lack of order (or tendency towards chaos) in the universe. The main character is a man of science (well, math, but that's close enough) who, do to the ever increasing disorder in his life turns to religious authorities for aid and comes away with... nothing. The comment is clear- no one, scientist nor religious leader can explain why things happen. While the results of this chaos are painful for the film's main character (played convincingly by Michael Stuhlbarg), they strike the darkly comic notes that the Coen brothers have perfected over the years and end up being remarkably entertaining of the audience.

The film is something of an assault on organized religion in general through the lens of Judaism. And what a perfect group to poke fun at when so much of Jewish culture are about remembering the sufferings of the last few thousand years. The Jews are a perfect representation of a group of people who have, at least in their self-identification, been victims of the lack of order in the world. The film certainly plays on Jewish stereotypes, but there are also the fine details that reveal the Coen's familiarity with the culture. And perhaps more importantly, the Rabbis are meant to represent religious leadership in general in a hilarious yet poignant commentary on religion's ability (or lack thereof) to shed any real light on why bad things happen to people who have "done nothing wrong."

The film is well made throughout- well shot, well edited and successful in using the fate of one poor individual to represent the plight of mankind living in this crazy chaotic world.