46/22
David Kaplan: Yes
Plot
The mismatched cousins reunite for a trip to Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when old tensions between the odd couple resurface amid their family history. When Benji and David visit their grandmother’s home in Poland, the setting is where Jesse Eisenberg’s real-life ancestors settled in the diaspora. Benji Kaplan: We stay moving, we stay light, we stay agile. Benji Kaplan: The conductor comes over, we buy tickets, we tell him we’re going to the bathroom. David Kaplan: Bathroom. Benji Kaplan: He gets on the back of the train, heads for the front, looking for vagrants.
Benji Kaplan: Yes
David Kaplan: Excuse me, are we the vagrants? By the time he gets to the front, the train will be at the station and we’ll be free to go home. David Kaplan: That’s fucking stupid. Tickets are probably like twelve dollars. Benji Kaplan: That’s the principle of it. We shouldn’t have to pay for train tickets in Poland. This is our country.
But Culkin is simply annoying
David Kaplan: No, this was our country. They fired us because they thought we were cheap. Appears in CBS News Sunday Morning: Episode 46.44 (2024). (I watched a preview in Bristol as part of the London Film Festival) I had high hopes for "A Real Pain" but despite a handful of funny moments and emotional speeches, there are simply too many areas where it misses the mark. The biggest positive is Jesse Eisenberg himself. The writer/director anchors the film as David, an awkward yet successful New Yorker, who invites his cousin Benji (Kieran Culkin) on a trip to Poland to pay homage to their grandmother and reflect on their personal struggles. Eisenberg is believable and likeable, and is at the center of the best scenes.
The role would have been much stronger if he’d been played straight
It’s an energetic performance, no doubt, but his instability and inability to read situations mean he’s the kind of guy you want to get rid of within minutes of meeting him. It’s hard to believe he’s going to be the star attraction of the tour group. Will Sharpe is also very weak as the tour guide, adopting an effective Yorkshire accent for comedic effect – perhaps not so much to American ears, but those British ears were sorely disappointed. The rest of the cast has small parts, but Jennifer Grey (yes, THE Jennifer Grey) and Kurt Egyiawan stand out, lending credibility to their characters. In addition to the shifting performances, there’s a general feeling that the scenes feel improvised and workshopped. Situations unfold without any apparent reason or resolution, or are assumed to have unfolded. For a drama to succeed – and at its heart it is a drama – the script and the story development need a tension that "True Pain" lacks.
A missed opportunity
Any momentum that builds up easily slips away – after half an hour I looked at my watch and the film feels long, even though it runs for less than 90 minutes. Oh, and there are times when the Polish promotional tourist board feels like it’s a tourist attraction – don’t get me wrong, it made me want to visit, I just don’t think that’s the role of the feature film. "True Pain" suggests that it has something important to say about grief, but it never finds the right words.
