A Serious Man (2009) on Netflix
Physics professor Larry Gopnik learns his wife Judith wants a divorce so she can marry Sy Ableman. His brother sleeps on the couch, a student leaves cash, and a tenure vote nears.
- Netflix3.1/5
- IMDb7.0/10159,842 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes89%
Trailer
Plot summary
Larry Gopnik teaches physics at a Minnesota university, where a tenure vote is coming and anonymous letters have argued against him. At home, his wife Judith tells him she wants a divorce so she can marry Sy Ableman, a widower she has fallen in love with, and the two ask Larry and his brother Arthur to leave the house. Arthur sleeps on the couch and spends his time filling a notebook he calls the Mentaculus. Danny, Larry's son, owes a Hebrew school classmate twenty dollars for marijuana, money hidden in a radio a teacher confiscated. A student, Clive Park, leaves an envelope of cash in Larry's office, and Larry's attempt to return it brings a threat of a lawsuit.
Cast
- Jessica McManusas Sarah Gopnik
- Brent Braunschweigas Mitch Brandt
- David Kangas Clive Park
- Benjamin Portnoeas Danny's Reefer Buddy
- Jack Swileras Boy on Bus
- Andrew S. Lentzas Cursing Boy on Bus
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about A Serious Man (2009)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Joel and Ethan Coen said the "germ" of the story was a rabbi from their own adolescence, a "mysterious figure" who had a private conversation with each student at the conclusion of their religious education.
- Scenes were shot at the Minneapolis legal offices of Meshbesher & Spence, and the name of its founder and president, Ronald I. Meshbesher, is mentioned in the film as the criminal lawyer recommended to Larry. Filming wrapped after 44 days, ahead of schedule and within budget.
- Ethan Coen said it seemed appropriate to open the film with a Yiddish folk tale, but as the brothers did not know any suitable ones, they wrote their own.
- The film's look is partly based on Brad Zellar's book Suburban World: The Norling Photographs, a collection of photographs of Bloomington in the 1950s and 60s.
