A Real Pain Open Caption (On-Screen Subtitles)

I WAS HAPPY TO SEE THAT KIERAN CULKIN WAS HONORED FOR HIS DEVASTATING PERFORMANCE IN "A REAL PAIN,." WITH A GOLDEN GLOBE AWARD & I WAS EQUALLY HAPPPY THAT SEBASTIAN STAN WON FOR "A DIFFERENT MAN." I KIND OF WISH THAT HE COULD ALSO HAVE WON FOR PLAYING DONALD TRUMP IN "THE APPRENTICE.," BUT I GUESS ONE AWARD WAS ENOUGH FOR ONE NIGHT. ALTHOUGH I ALSO LIKED DEMI MOORE'S PERFORMANCE IN "THE SUBSTANCE," I HAVE MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT HER WINNING AN AWARD FOR SUCH A GHASTLY FILM. SHE CERTAINLY CONVEYED THE TRAUMA THAT MATURE ACTRESSES FACE IN SUCH A YOUTH-ORIENTED PROFESSION SUCH AS WHEN SHE EXPRESSES A LOOK OF ANGUISH ON HER FACE WHEN SHE OVERHEARS DENNIS QUAID'S CHARACTER COMPLAIN ABOUT WANTING TO FIND SOMEONE YOUNGER & WITH THE MELANCHOLIC LOOK SHE SHOWS WHEN SHE SEES AN AD CALLING FOR "A YOUNG ELIZABETH SPARKLE" IN A TRADE PAPER. BUT, AS THE FILM WENT ON, THINGS JUST GOT WORSE & WORSE FOR HER CHARACTER (AND IT WAS CERTAINLY DISTURBING TO HEAR THE AUDIENCE MEMBERS AT MOMA LAUGHING WHEN EVERYTHING WAS GOING SO BADLY FOR HER). THE ONE CHANCE FOR REDEMPTION FOR HER CHARACTER SEEMED TO COME WHEN SHE MAKES A DATE WITH A MAN SHE KNEW IN THE 10TH GRADE. WHEN WE SEE MS. MOORE FRANTICALLY REAPPLYING HER CHARACTER'S MAKEUP OVER & OVER AGAIN, WE SEE HOW EAGER HER CHARACTER IS LOOK AS BEAUTIFUL IN HER YOUNGER DAYS. BUT, INSTEAD OF LETTING US SEE HER CHARACTER ADJUSTING TO A MORE MATURE BEAUTY, WE SEE HER GETTING PUNISHED FOR WANTING TO KEEP LOOKING BEAUTIFUL. MS. MOORE HAS GIVEN SUCH WONDERFUL PERFORMANCES BOTH ON STAGE (IN A 1986 PLAY CALLED "AN EARLY GIRL" AT THE LATE, MUCH LAMENTED CIRCLE REPERTORY THEATER) & ON FILM IN 1990'S MOVIES LIKE "GHOST" & "THE BUTCHER'S WIFE." THEREFORE, I WISH THAT SHE COULD HAVE MADE HER COMEBACK BY WORKING WITH A TALENTED & COMPASIONATE DIRECTOR LIKE MR. EISENBERG INSTEAD OF IN SOMETHING AS REPUGNANT AS "THE SUBSTANCE."

JESSE EISENBERG HAS CREATED AN INGENIOUS COMBINATION OF A BROMANTIC ESCAPADE & A TIMELY REMINDER OF HOW MUCH THE HOLOCAUST STILL SERVES AS A HAUNTING EXAMPLE OF MAN'S INHUMANITY TO MAN. AND ONE OF THE BEST DECISIONS HE MADE AS A DIRECTOR WAS TO CAST KIERAN CULKIN AS BENJI, THE COUSIN TO HIS OWN CHARACTER, DAVID. MR. CULKIN'S EXCESSIVELY HYPER PORTRAYAL OF BENJI WAS THE PERFECT CONTRAST TO MR. EISENBERG'S FAR MORE LAID BACK PORTRAYAL OF DAVID. OF COURSE, BENJ'S ANXIETY CAN BE HARD TO TAKE AT TIMES- ESPECIALLY IN THE SCENE WHERE DAVID & HE ARE TRAVELING ON THE TRAIN WITH THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE HOLOCAUST TOUR & HE STARTS CRITICIZING THEM FOR FAILING TO EXPERIENCE THE SAME LEVEL OF PAIN THAT HE FEELS. THE FACTOR THAT MAKES IT MOST TROUBLING IS THAT ONE WOMAN, MARCIA (JENNIFER GREY) IS THE DAUGHTER OF A WOMAN WHO WAS IN THE CAMPS & A GENTLEMAN IS A SURVIVOR OF THE RWANDAN GENOCIDE & THERE IS A GENTLEMAN WHOSE FAMILY LEFT POLAND SEVERAL DECADES BEFORE THE HOLOCAUST, BUT WHO PROBABLY SUFFERED THROUGH SOME POGROMS. IT NEVER SEEMED TO OCCUR TO BENJI THAT THEY WERE ALL DEALING WITH THEIR PAIN IN THEIR OWN WAY. HOWEVER, I WAS HAPPY TO SEE MARCIA APPROACH BENJI ON THE DAY AFTER HIS TIRADE & TELL HIM THAT SHE UNDERSTOOD WHAT HE WAS SAYING . AND THE GENTLE & SYMPATHETIC TONE THAT MS. GREY USED IN THIS SCENE SHOWED HOW MUCH MARCIA CARED ABOUT BENJI. AND WE SEE ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF BENJI'S PAIN WHEN THEY ARE ALL SEATED AT DINNER & DAVID REPEATS A COMMENT THAT THEIR GRANDMOTHER MADE WHICH BENJI TAKES AS A CRITICISM OF HIM. WHEN BENJI WALKS AWAY FROM THE TABLE IN A HUFF, MR. EISENBERG THEN SHIFTS THE FOCUS TO DAVID & HE DOES SO IN AN EXTREMELY CLEVER WAY. MR. EISENBERG FIRST SHOWS DAVID IN A CLOSE-UP FROM THE SIDE, & THEN PANS OVER TO MARCIA LISTENING TO WHAT DAVID IS SAYING, & THEN PANS BACK TO DAVID IN A FRONTAL SHOT, ALTHOUGH WE SEE THE CHARACTER, JAMES (WILL SHARPE) FROM THE SIDE AT FIRST, MR. EISENBERG STARTS MOVING THE CAMERA CLOSER & CLOSER TO DAVID, &, AS HE TALKS, WE REALIZE THAT DAVID IS FEELING THE SAME TYPE OF PAIN THAT BENJI FEELS. WE ALSO HAVE TO GIVE CINEMATOGRAPHER MICHAL DYMAK CREDIT FOR THIS SCENE, & WE ALSO NEED TO GIVE HIM CREDIT FOR THE WAY THAT HE CAPTURED THE BRIGHT & VIBRANT COLORS OF THE POLISH CITIES. BUT, WHEN WE SEE THE BEAUTY OF THESE CITIES, WE CAN'T HELP WONDERING HOW SOME OF THE PEOPLE FROM THESE CITIES & VILLAGES COULD END UP COLLABORATING WITH THE NAZXIS IN KILLING THREE MILLION OF THEIR OWN CITIZENS- & ALSO WONDER HOW THE CITIZENS OF GERMANY & THE OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES COULD COLLABORATE IN KILLING ANOTHER 3 MILLION & MORE CITIZENS OF T HEIR COUNTRIES. "A REAL PAIN" MIGHT NOT HAVE QUITE AS MUCH IMPACT AS FILMS SUCH AS "CABARET" & "JULIA" WHICH SHOWED US THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE EVENTS THAT LED TO THE HOLOCAUST, OR OF FILMS LIKE "SOPHIE'S CHOICE," "THE GARDEN OF THE FINZI-CONTINIS," & "THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK" THAT DEPICTED THE EVENTS OF THE HOLOCAUST, BUT IT'S DEFINITELY AN IMPORTANT REMINDER OF MAN'S POTENTIAL FOR EVIL, & ITS EFFECT ON SUBSEQUENT GENERATIONS.