A Serious Man
2009
You might also like
Where to watch
Show all servicesRate And Review
-
What did you think of the movie? (optional)
You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.
You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.
What did you think of the movie? (optional)
How did you buy your ticket?
-
Fandango
-
AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew
-
Cinemark Coming Soon
We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.
-
Regal Coming Soon
We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.
-
Theater box office or somewhere else
A Serious Man Photos
Movie Info
Cast & Crew
Larry Gopnik
Uncle Arthur
Sy Ableman
Judith Gopnik
Danny Gopnik
Sarah Gopnik
News & Interviews for A Serious Man
Critic Reviews for A Serious Man
All Critics (224) | Top Critics (76) | Fresh (200) | Rotten (24)
-
Does have its delicious moments and Michael Stuhlbarg does give an excellent, exasperated, frazzled lead performance... But without any warmth or expansiveness it all seems too cruelly easy and shrivelling somehow.
August 30, 2018 | Full Review… -
The entire script is a mishmash: funny, droll, and anxiety producing, just like daily life in many Jewish families.
January 17, 2018 | Full Review… -
See this movie for a good laugh, and know that no matter what's going on in your life, A Serious Man proves things can certainly get worse.
September 11, 2017 | Rating: B | Full Review… -
Quote not available.
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review… -
Quote not available.
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 5/5 -
Quote not available.
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 5/5
Audience Reviews for A Serious Man
-
Sep 12, 2012A put-upon Jewish suburbanite suffers the trials and indignities of everyday life in the 1960s. I'm a big fan of the Coen brothers and I'm convinced that this, their latest straight comedy, is a quality film. The problem is that its audience is a very narrow one; namely Jewish Americans. Being as Goy as they come, the cultural references flew straight over my head and I found the constant religious references utterly baffling. Michael Stuhlbarg makes a very sympathetic central character and the gentle humour is always amusing. When I actually understood it. I'm sure the sly and witty observations on the modern Jewish condition are hilarious to the intended demographic but if like me you're not part of it, I suspect you'll find it equally bemusing.xGary X Super Reviewer
-
Mar 25, 2012Truly unique and full of deep questions about life, this is the Coen's most mature and reflective work. With hilarious dialogue and once again pitch perfect performances from the entire cast.Graham J Super Reviewer
-
Feb 24, 2012A really bad movie, easily the worst of the Coen brothers. There is NOTHING funny about it, and even if themes do exist here, they are buried upon layers of dullness. Everything that happens is totally senseless and pointless, there's not a single good thing about A Serious Man. Avoid at all costs.Kevin M Super Reviewer
-
Jan 14, 2012The Coens have always had a knack for mixing the bleak with the humorous. With A Serious Man, they apply that method to matters of faith. The man in question is Larry Gopnick, a physics professor at the local Minnesota university. He has a wonderful job, a family that he loves and a secure place in the community. Everything seems on the up and up for Larry. But things begin to change for the worse, and he is faced with a series of very unfortunate events. His wife wants a "get", a ritual divorce of some kind. His application for tenure at the university is suddenly in danger due to a series of anonymous letters. Both his son and daughter are sneaking money out of his wallet. One for marijuana, the other for a nose job. This forces Larry on his own spiritual quest, and he asks some important questions: Why does God let bad things happen to good people? Is he even there at all? Because of it's subject matter, A Serious Man is the Coen's most universal film. Though the film centers on a man of the Jewish persuasion, any pious or questioning adult may find some insight in this wonderfully and bitterly comic examination of the spiritual dilemma. The film as a whole (including the the opening Yiddish folk tale, I believe) is a proclamation of the uncertainty of God's existence. Either he is there throughout the film, or he is absent. Either the Yiddish couple of the opening story and Larry are cursed by God, or everything happens randomly with no rhyme or reason. He either exists or he doesn't and the film doesn't spell out an answer for us. The film is a very dark but bitterly funny examination of that question. Michael Stuhlbarg is very good as the hapless Larry Gopnick as he treated as a proverbial punching bag by everyone around him, and God if he's even present. Richard Kind is also very good as his brilliant but socially inept brother Arthur, who can't seem to catch any breaks of his own. Both performances skillfully mix that bitter humor and sadness that is emblematic of the piece as a whole. The Coen's script give keen insight into their observations and history with the faith of their childhood. As for where the Coens land on the question of God, own could probably take a good listen to the Jefferson Airplane song that plays throughout the film. When everything is lies, and all within you dies then what? Find someone to love.For in a world without a God, all we have is each other.Brandon S Super Reviewer
A Serious Man Quotes
| Sy Ableman: | No one's playing the blame game here. |
| Rabbi Scott: | No, of course not. I am the junior rabbi. And it's true, the point-of-view of somebody who's older and perhaps had similar problems might be more valid. And you should see the senior rabbi as well, by all means. Or even Minda if you can get in, he's quite busy. But maybe - can I share something with you? Because I too have had the feeling of losing track of Hashem, which is the problem here. I too have forgotten how to see Him in the world. And when that happens you think, well, if I can't see Him, He isn't there any more, He's gone. But that's not the case. You just need to remember how to see Him. Am I right? [He rises and goes to the window] |
| Rabbi Scott: | I mean, the parking lot here. Not much to see. It is a different angle on the same parking lot we saw from the Hebrew school window. But if you imagine yourself a visitor, somebody who isn't familiar with these... autos and such... somebody still with a capacity for wonder... Someone with a fresh... perspective. That's what it is, Larry. |
| Larry Gopnik: | Um... |
| Rabbi Scott: | Because with the right perspective you can see Hashem, you know, reaching into the world. He is in the world, not just in shul. It sounds to me like you're looking at the world, looking at your wife, through tired eyes. It sounds like she's become a sort of... thing... a problem... a thing... |
| Larry Gopnik: | Well, she's, she's seeing Sy Ableman. |
| Rabbi Scott: | Well, she's, she's seeing Sy Ableman. |
| Larry Gopnik: | She's, they're planning, that's why they want the Gett. |
| Rabbi Scott: | Oh. I'm sorry. |
| Larry Gopnik: | It was his idea. |
Verified