After the success of When You Finish Saving the World, Jesse Eisenberg returns with an ambitious new project: A Real Pain, a comedy-drama full of emotion and humor. Awarded a screenplay prize at the Sundance Film Festival, the film reunites Eisenberg with Succession star Kieran Culkin as two cousins with contrasting personalities. Eisenberg, who also plays one of the leads, ventures here into an intimate register, exploring themes of family memory and the complex relationships that bind its protagonists. A Real Pain promises a touching, heartfelt tale, buoyed by the chemistry between its two leads.
A Real Pain will be released in cinemas from February 26, 2025.
Synopsis: Two cousins with diametrically opposed characters - David and Benji - reunite on a trip to Poland to honor the memory of their beloved grandmother. Their odyssey takes an unexpected turn when the old tensions of this unlikely duo resurface against the backdrop of their family history...
David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin) are cousins, but their lives and personalities couldn't be more different. David is quiet, thoughtful and introverted, while Benji is exuberant, unpredictable and always looking for trouble. They find themselves in Poland to honor the memory of their grandmother, a journey they approach with mixed emotions. As they discover traces of family history and memories of the Second World War, old tensions resurface, testing their already fragile relationship. Between moments of tenderness, outbursts of quarrelling and laughter, A Real Pain explores the unspoken family secrets and unhealed wounds that still haunt the present.
A Real Pain is aimed at an audience fond of intimate dramatic comedies, blending humor and emotion, in the tradition of films such as The Berkmans Split or The Meyerowitz Stories. Fans of Jesse Eisenberg, both as an actor and director, as well as admirers of Kieran Culkin, will find in this film a sincere exploration of family ties with a typically offbeat touch of humor. What sets A Real Pain apart is its deft blend of lightness and emotional depth, thanks in particular to the historical setting of Poland and the themes of family heritage and grief, giving the film added weight. Those who enjoyed Skylab or Little Miss Sunshine will appreciate the bittersweet humor of this family road-trip.
Between laughter and tears, A Real Pain promises to be a moving work on the complexity of human relationships, driven by the complicity between Jesse Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin. With his personal style and sensitive vision of family emotions, Eisenberg promises a film that is both funny and poignant, rooted in universal themes of memory and reconciliation. To be seen in cinemas from February 26, 2025, for a moment of cinema that's both entertaining and profound.
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