A Real Pain (2024)
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Mismatched cousins embark on a Jewish heritage tour through Poland to connect with their family history while navigating their own internal struggles.
The story
Benji and David, mismatched cousins, reunite for a Jewish heritage tour through Poland to honor their late grandmother's memory. As they travel through cities like Warsaw and Lublin, their contrasting personalities—Benji as a free-spirited, outspoken drifter and David as a pragmatic, reserved family man—lead to frequent friction. Accompanied by a diverse group of travelers and a knowledgeable guide, the cousins must navigate the complexities of their shared history and their differing ways of coping with the past. The journey serves as a catalyst for them to confront their personal lives and the weight of their family's history amidst the backdrop of the Holocaust.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Benji and David, cousins with vastly different outlooks on life, travel to Poland to visit their late grandmother's home and explore their Jewish heritage. During the tour, they encounter a group of travelers, including a retired couple, a divorcee, and a survivor of the Rwandan genocide. Tensions peak as Benji's unfiltered behavior clashes with David's reserved nature. After a series of events, including a tense moment in a train and a somber visit to the Majdanek concentration camp, the truth of their fractured relationship is revealed: Benji had attempted suicide months earlier. On their final night, they share a raw conversation about their pain and the impact of the past. The film concludes with a poignant moment of reconciliation in their grandmother's hometown, where they ultimately acknowledge their deep bond before parting ways to their respective lives in New York.
- First release year
- 2024
- Runtime (minutes)
- 90
- Production countries
- Poland; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Jesse Eisenberg
- Writers
- Jesse Eisenberg · writer
- Cast and characters
- Jesse Eisenberg · Benji; Kieran Culkin · David; Will Sharpe; Jennifer Grey; Kurt Egyiawan; Liza Sadovy; Daniel Oreskes
- Genres
- comedy-drama
- Themes
- family history; grief; trauma; identity
- Tone and mood
- sardonic; solemn; poignant
- Premise and plot tags
- road movie; buddy comedy; historical drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- Based on a short story titled 'Mongolia' and elements from two plays, 'The Revisionist' and 'The Spoils'.
- Reception
- The film was critically acclaimed, described as 'funny, heartfelt, and moving' and 'perfectly weighted between bleak and warm.' It received 'universal acclaim' on Metacritic.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 85 · scale: 100 · review count: 55
- Awards and nominations
- Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award · Sundance Film Festival · 2024 · Win; Academy Award · Best Supporting Actor · 2024 · Win; Academy Award · Best Original Screenplay · 2024 · Nomination; British Academy Film Award · Best Original Screenplay · 2024 · Win; British Academy Film Award · Best Supporting Actor · 2024 · Win; Independent Spirit Award · Best Original Screenplay · 2024 · Win; Independent Spirit Award · Best Supporting Actor · 2024 · Win; Critics' Choice Award · Best Comedy · 2024 · Win; Critics' Choice Award · Best Supporting Actor · 2024 · Win; Golden Globe Award · Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture · 2024 · Win; Satellite Award · Best Original Screenplay · 2024 · Win; Gotham Award · Best Supporting Actor · 2024 · Nomination
- Production trivia
- Eisenberg was granted Polish citizenship in March 2025.; The film's score is composed of piano pieces by Frédéric Chopin.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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