For those of us looking for answers in cinema, “A Serious Man” may seem like a cruel joke. On the other hand, the Coen Brother’s film might offer the only real comfort one can get from great art: the certainty that we are not alone, that others share our existential malaise
A SERIOUS MAN: An Ethical Life
A Serious Man
At first glance, the film has a deceivingly simple plot: upon close examination, however, it acquires the level of a modern allegory of Job’s parable, a Jewish fable or—more secularly—an illustration of German philosopher Friedrich Hegel’s “Paradox of theWill.”
“A Serious Man” begins with a quote from a medieval French rabbi that draws upon the teachings of Job’s parable: “Take with humility everything that happens to you.” Located in Minnesota in 1967, the movie written and directed by Ethan and Joel Coen, reveals like so many other films and television programs in vogue (“Revolutionary Road,” “Mad Men”), the sinister side of the seemingly peaceful and happy suburbs of the epoch. The only difference is that the action does not focus on a “typical” American family, but a Jewish one. Read more of this post
A Serious Man
UN HOMBRE SERIO: Una Vida Ética
Para quienes buscamos respuestas en el cine, Un Hombre Serio parecería una broma cruel, pero tal vez la película de los hermanos Coen nos ofrece el único verdadero confort que se puede sacar de una buena obra de arte: saber que no estamos solos, que nuestras angustias existenciales son compartidas por otros. La cinta tiene una trama sencilla en apariencia, pero su planteamiento podría ser elevado a la parábola de Job, a una fabula judía y más universalmente a la Paradoja de la Voluntad de Hegel. Un Hombre serio comienza con la cita de un rabino medieval francés que toma su consejo de la historia de Job: “Recibe con sencillez todo lo que te suceda”. Ubicada en Minnesota en 1967, Un Hombre Serio muestra, como tantas otras cintas y programas de televisión en boga (Revolutionary Road , Mad Men), el lado siniestro de los aparentemente tranquilos y felices suburbios de ese entonces. Read more of this post
