Underneath all its cheeky nihilism, the Coen Brothers’ A Serious Man ponders a very serious concept indeed: the tireless quest to believe in something larger than life itself. Pragmatism reigns for physics professor and devoted family man Larry Gopnik until his wife asks for a divorce, causing things to slowly tear at the seams. Suddenly, tenure isn’t definite anymore. The smarmy Sy Abelman is shacking up with his former spouse. Bills are piling up. His son would rather watch F Troop than study his Haftarah. Larry tries to better understand his predicament by growing closer to the Jewish religion, documented in visits with three different rabbis, but nothing seems to make any sense at all.
As a film that comments on the folly of devout Judaism while still reveling in some of its classic rituals, A Serious Man suggests that everyone is on a flat plane in the eyes of God. The more pious men may field the questions, but no one, not even the wisest of all rabbis, possesses the answers. The Coens may not necessarily implore us to stop searching. Yet as we grow and evolve and better develop our moral compass, their advice, through Larry’s confusion, is that we had best just enjoy the ride no matter what happens.
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