The latest release from filmmaking auters Joel and Ethan Coen, A Serious Man, tells the story of Larry Gopnik, a physics professor living in 1967 Minneapolis. His story closely parallels that of the book of Job; a seemingly good person is afflicted by a deluge of misfortunes. His wife leaves him; his health is questioned; his brother, who is incapable of taking care of himself, is involved in gambling and perhaps sexual troubles; an anti-Semitic and racist neighbor is encroaching on his land.
Like all Coen brothers’ films, A Serious Man intertwines details large and small to create a complete story; however, as in most Coen Brothers’ films, the larger picture is not always immediately obvious. One such example is the opening sequence, which portrays the encounter of an Old World couple with a dybbuk. The theme of dybbuk does appear later in the main feature and the vignette does question the viewers’ perception of reality, and truth and fiction, but how the vignette relates directly to Larry Gopnick’s story? We’re not sure. A Serious Man, again like most Coen Brothers’ movies, surely requires repeated viewings.
Conversely, the theme of physics, as a science made up of proofs, contrasts with Gopnick’s inability to control. At one point, speaking with a South Korean student (he and his father provide almost exclusively all of the laugh out loud moments of the film), Gopnick repeatedly states that mathematics is essential to comprehending physics. Meaning, everything is boiled down to equations – for which there is always an answer. Contrast this with Gopnick’s repeated visits to the town’s rabbis, from whom he begs an answer as to why God is afflicting him. None of the rabbis has an answer. Instead they employ a magician’s misdirection, trying to steer Larry away from his questioning.
Ultimately, A Serious Man is a film that explores man’s inability to act in the face of challenges, while concomitantly questioning whether taking action is futile, which is portrayed brilliantly in the film’s penultimate scene (no spoilers!). Whether this is the Coens’ best film for years, as many critics are saying, well, we’ll leave that one to the professional. On the comedy side it certainly isn’t The Big Lebowski and from the drama aspect it’s no Barton Fink.
Ironically, the lesson of A Serious Man may be the exact opposite of what the title denotes: we would all benefit from actually being less serious about our lives. What’s the point of self-reflection if life’s not in our control? Should we spend our limited time on Earth enjoying ourselves and let the course of fate unfold without our interference?
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