A REAL PAIN

 The first time I remember seeing Jesse Eisenberg was as the teenage nephew of Campbell Scott in an underrated little gem called "Roger Dodger" which he had no trouble in stealing from his co-star and then as the teenage son of divorcing parents in "The Squid and the Whale". I knew then he was a talent to watch. Unfortunately, apart from "Adventureland" the films in which he subsequently found himself cast did little for his career until the dream role of Mark Zuckerberg in "The Social Network" came along.

He was brilliant in the part but by now it also had become clear that Eisenberg was no character or method actor; he was recognizably Eisenberg in every part he played; nerdy, fastidious if always a little challenging. If he has grown as an actor he has also grown as 'Eisenberg', cementing his reputation for nerdy heroes and he's no different in "A Real Pain" but here he's not just playing a variation of Eisenberg created by someone else. This time he's written the film and directed it as well; he's his own 'Eisenberg' and quite frankly he's magnificent.

Pain is the operative word in this picture which is about two youngish American cousins who go on a Holocaust tour of Poland to honor the memory of their deceased grandmother. Eisenberg, naturally, is the nerdy, sensible one and an equally magnificent Kieran Culkin, giving the performance of his life, is the bombastic, extrovert and deeply troubled one; the pain is all his and watching them play off against each other is a masterclass in acting.

Clocking in at around the ninety minute mark this is a film of real depth and says as much about the legacy of the Holocaust as any number of "Schindler's List"s. Who could fail but to be deeply moved by the scenes in the concentration camp or by Culkin's reaction to the visit. This is a film that's profound on so many levels yet nothing in it feels like overkill.

It may seem odd to go as far as to class it as a comedy and yet it's often laugh-out-loud funny. Eisenberg's genius as a writer and director is that he can move from comedy to tragedy in the blink of an eye; he seems to see them simply as the opposite sides of the same coin. Culkin, of course, is the one whose performance will win the Oscar but Eisenberg, too, deserves his place in the sun, (Best Original Screenplay, perhaps). Nerdy he may still appear on the surface but that boy from "Roger Dodger" has definitely come a long way.