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A Real Pain
Plot
Cousins David and Benji Kaplan grew up almost like brothers, but adult life pulled them apart. David is reserved and anxious, with a wife, a son and a steady job in New York. Benji is loud, says whatever he thinks and seems to have no direction.
After the death of their beloved grandmother, a Holocaust survivor, the two meet up at JFK Airport for a trip she paid for in advance: a Jewish heritage tour of Poland that includes a visit to the house where she grew up.
In Warsaw they join a small tour group led by James, a British guide who lives and breathes this history. Benji wins the group over in minutes with his easy charm and, on the very first day, gets everyone to stage a scene at the Warsaw Uprising monument while David watches from the side, mortified. Stop after stop, the trip stirs up the family's past and the old wounds between the two cousins.
Official trailer
Awards and nominees
- Oscars 2025 · Best Supporting Actor · Kieran Culkin
Beat: Anora (Yura Borisov), A Complete Unknown (Edward Norton), The Brutalist (Guy Pearce), The Apprentice (Jeremy Strong)
Trivia
- The idea grew out of "Mongolia," a 2017 short story by Jesse Eisenberg that he had struggled to adapt.
- It was shot mostly in Poland between May and June 2023 on a budget of about $3 million. It grossed $24.9 million worldwide.
- It premiered at Sundance, where it won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award. Eisenberg later took the BAFTA for Original Screenplay.
Cast
- David KaplanJesse Eisenberg
- Benji KaplanKieran Culkin
- JamesWill Sharpe
- MarciaJennifer Grey
- ElogeKurt Egyiawan
- DianeLiza Sadovy
- MarkDaniel Oreskes
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Original text by Sagaspedia. Posters: The Movie Database (TMDB); character photos via Wikipedia. This site uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB. All trademarks and titles mentioned belong to their respective owners. Streaming availability may change.
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