A Real Pain

Two cousins, Jesse Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin, go to Poland on a tour aimed at Jewish people trying to reconnect with their past. They set out to visit the house their grandmother lived in, and old tensions between the two of them rise up.

This leans in to the strengths of both players - angsty, sharp, nervy energy from Eisenberg and brash, sad, witty confidence from Kieran Culkin (perfected on Succession and very well deployed here). The writing and interplay between the two is funny, touching and a joy to watch unfold. It’s got a bit of a Darjeeling Limited buddy-movie vibe to it but setting it amongst a small group of other tourists give it its own pace.

It’s an effective look at trauma and pain, both personal and generational. Culkin’s extreme frankness and honesty serves as a great ‘in’ to explore the film’s core themes, while also helping us build a clearer picture of his character. It’s great that he won an Oscar for this, although ‘supporting’ actor is a stretch when he’s clearly a co-lead here.