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A Serious Man
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A Serious Man (2009) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 52 | slideshow) Videos (see all 19)
A Serious Man (2009) -- A black comedy set in 1967 and centered on on Larry Gopnik (Stuhlbarg), a Midwestern professor who watches his life unravel when his wife prepares to leave him because his inept brother (Kind) won't move out of the house.
A Serious Man (2009) -- A clip from the movie A Serious Man.
A Serious Man (2009) -- Interview: Fred Melamed "On Larry, Judith and Sy"
A Serious Man (2009) -- Trailer for this Coen brothers comedy
A Serious Man (2009) -- MoviesTrailer.org - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
8.1/10   5,577 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 24% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Directors:
Writers (WGA):
Joel Coen (written by) &
Ethan Coen (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for A Serious Man on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
9 October 2009 (Denmark) more
Genre:
Plot:
A black comedy set in 1967 and centered on Larry Gopnik, a Midwestern professor who watches his life unravel when his wife prepares to leave him because his inept brother won't move out of the house. | full synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 3 wins & 11 nominations more
User Reviews:
Blacker than black more (87 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Michael Stuhlbarg ... Larry Gopnik

Richard Kind ... Uncle Arthur

Fred Melamed ... Sy Ableman

Sari Lennick ... Judith Gopnik
Aaron Wolff ... Danny Gopnik
Jessica McManus ... Sarah Gopnik

Peter Breitmayer ... Mr. Brandt
Brent Braunschweig ... Mitch Brandt

David Kang ... Clive Park
Benjy Portnoe ... Danny's Reefer Buddy (as Bejamin Portnoe)
Jack Swiler ... Boy on Bus
Andrew S. Lentz ... Cursing Boy on Bus
Jon Kaminski Jr. ... Mike Fagle

Ari Hoptman ... Arlen Finkle
Alan Mandell ... Rabbi Marshak
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Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Ciddi bir adam (Turkey: Turkish title) (festival title) [tr]
Enas sovaros anthropos (Greece) [el]
Ozbiljan covjek (Croatia) (wide-release title) [hr]
Um Homem Sério (Brazil) [pt]
Un hombre serio (Argentina) [es]
Yehudi Tov (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
more
MPAA:
Rated R for language, some sexuality/nudity and brief violence.
Runtime:
105 min | Canada:105 min (Toronto International Film Festival)
Country:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
USA:R (certificate #45447) | Denmark:11 | UK:15 | Canada:G (Québec) | Australia:M | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Ireland:15A | Canada:14A (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) | Iceland:12 | Finland:K-11

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The names of the characters who ride the school bus with Danny Gopnik are the names of children that the Coen brothers grew up with. more
Goofs:
Factual errors: Danny repeatedly asks his father (Larry) to adjust the aerial on the roof. However, the Gopniks' TV is equipped with rabbit ears and a UHF loop, making an exterior antenna redundant. more
Quotes:
Sy Ableman: I think, really, the Jolly Roger is the appropriate course of action. more
Movie Connections:

FAQ

Some Hebrew terms explained
more
73 out of 105 people found the following review useful.
Blacker than black, 14 September 2009
9/10
Author: (hcfnotlcd)

I saw this movie at TIFF on Saturday. The Coens quietly (and I mean quietly - no-one could hear even their amplified voices) introduced the movie with reference to the actors present but not the movie, letting it speak for itself. And it did. In its own way. It is an off-beat (what else?) and serious work that radiates bleak despair while searching for a funny bone. In the process, the movie makes other black comedies look positively light and airy. The movie evokes laughs from a different place than most – from a profound discomfort watching people twist themselves this way and that to fit in and be regarded seriously, whether situationally, socially or religiously. A great piece of work that will have you thinking long afterwards, especially considering the odd and difficult-to-contextualize prologue and, um different, ending which bookend a remarkable work.

Was the above review useful to you?
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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for A Serious Man (2009)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Ending's not unresolved, just boring avgfilmfan
someone PLEASE tell me how i can watch this schmeppy
People walked out.. Angellic_Sweetness
Best line delivery ApostleofWonka
Song after Bar Mitzvah ghbbrown-1
Top 10 Coen Brothers Characters imaintdan
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