Film: “A Real Pain,” written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg

Jesse Eisenberg must be the most unselfish writer-director on the planet. He creates a gem of a film like “A Real Pain,” and gives the best on-screen moments to his co-star, Kieran Culkin.

Those who saw Culkin slay “Succession” will love his over-the-top performance here as Benji Kaplan. He and Eisenberg play the Kaplan cousins, who’ve signed up for a Jewish heritage tour in Poland. The purpose is in part to honor the memory of their beloved grandmother, a Holocaust survivor, who has recently died.

Eisenberg plays Dave, the very controlled cousin who lives with his wife and young daughter in New York City and sells digital ad space. Benji, his BFF growing up, now lives upstate and doesn’t do much of anything. In typical Benji fashion, however, he has mailed himself a pound of weed from America which arrives at the first hotel just before the tour begins in Warsaw.

The tour is led by a non-Jewish historian (Will Sharpe) and is composed of a diverse group of Jews, including Melissa, an attractive divorcee from LA (Jennifer Gray, from “Dirty Dancing”) as well as Mark and Diane, a couple from Shaker Heights (Daniel Oreskes and Liza Sadovy). Also onboard is Eloge (Kurt Egyiawan), a Rwandan refugee living in Winnipeg, who has converted to Judaism. The group tours Poland’s cities and countryside, and in an incredibly moving sequence, visits the Majdanek concentration camp, a few miles from Lublin, a city with a rich Jewish history.

Benji quickly establishes himself as the group’s real pain (hence the movie’s title). Riding first-class train on a train in Poland, he suddenly bursts out screaming about the irony of the situation. “Eighty years ago we were being herded into cars like this!!” The cousins eventually miss their train stop because Dave falls asleep, thoroughly exhausted by Benji’s antics.

But Benji doesn’t annoy just his cousin. He also accuses the guide of delivering “too many factoids” and diminishing the emotional experience. Benji’s wild swings between unnerving calm and frenetic exuberance both amuse and upset his fellow travelers.

One night at dinner after Benji excuses himself, Dave delivers an eloquent apologia to the group, describing why he both loves his cousin and often hates him. “I wish I could just walk into a room and charm everybody like he does,” he admits wistfully.

After the visit to Majdanek, the cousins part from the group to visit the village where their grandmother lived. They eventually find her home. In contrast to what they’ve seen on the tour, there’s nothing remarkable nor particularly Jewish about it.

“Real Pain” is a movie—part buddy-flick, part dramedy—that skillfully blends humor, melancholy, and family relationship dynamics. Much of the dialogue feels improvised which I’ve read reflects Culkin’s insistence on departing from the script. Good for him.

As for Culkin, if he doesn’t at least get an Oscar nom for “Pain,” I’m texting Shiv Roy and brother Kendall. They’ll know who to call.

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