As the new Coen brothers' movie, A Serious Man, was introduced at the Wassermann Cinematheque, it was pointed out that Judaism was a central part of the movie. As a Catholic, my first thought was that much of the movie would go right over my head. My second was the realization that I would have to review something that went right over my head. But as it turns out, despite the obvious role that Judaism plays in the film, it can be understood and enjoyed by anyone.The movie opens with a short, folktale-like story about a couple's encounter with what could be a "dybbuk," or an evil spirit that possesses a dead body. The entire scene is strange, with an air of doubt and confusion throughout as what could either be a dybbuk or a mortally wounded man walks out of the couple's home, with no solid explanation given for what the two have witnessed. The Coens have said that the short is unconnected to the film itself, but the battle between logic and spirituality and the lingering questions it gives to the audience sets them up for the rest of the movie.

The film is about Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg), a college professor living in a Minneapolis suburb in 1969, a setting that is said to be based on the Coen brothers' childhood hometown of St. Louis Park, a middle-class largely Jewish suburb. Gopnik suddenly finds problems piled onto him. A student bribes him to get a passing grade and subsequently sues him for defamation while he is up for tenure. His wife (Sari Wagner Lennick) announces that she wants a divorce, his son Danny (Aaron Wolff) has his bar mitzvah coming up, his daughter (Jessica McManus) wants a nose job, and his brother (Richard Kind) is living on his couch. In the face of these misfortunes, he seeks help from three rabbis in an attempt to find out what he should do and to become a spiritual "serious man."

His meetings with the rabbis leave him more frustrated than comforted, having received advice that seems either useless or unrelated to his problems. The audience can sympathize with Gopnik as he responds to each problem with a panicking, exasperated "I didn't do anything." This mantra is repeated throughout the film, highlighting just how unwilling he is to take his problems into his own hands. He never tries to stop and solve his problems, only making them worse. He looks to the rabbis for solutions, searching for what life could mean and ignoring his own advice to his brother that God might want him to help himself.

The Coens' signature dark humor is here in full force. A standout is Sy Ableman (Fred Melamed), Gopnik's wife's boyfriend and a character that I can only compare to Will Ferrell's take on James Lipton. Also great is Danny's attempt at completing his bar mitzvah while high. There are some shocking and disturbing scenes that are made funny, but if you are a fan of the Coens' movies you'll probably know what to expect. By the end of the movie, it earns its disclaimer that "No Jews were harmed in the making of this film."

Stuhlbarg and Wolff, whose characters are the most fleshed-out and who are given the most screen time, are great. Certain characters come off as unrelatable, but this lets the audience see them as Gopnik sees them: as people who appear to only either add to his confusion by giving no explanation for their actions or add to his problems.

The movie leaves you with an uncertain ending that has you thinking about religion, spirituality, the consequences of our actions and the amount of power we have over certain events. It can be a lot to take in, and one could probably benefit from more than one viewing. But even if you do see it more than once, you probably shouldn't expect a completely clear answer to many of the film's lingering questions, as much of the movie is about how hard it can sometimes be to get answers.

The National Center for Jewish Film sponsored a question-and-answer session after the screening featuring Stuhlbarg and Wolff, a 15-year-old who was cast out of about 400 people in the Minneapolis area in a process Wolff described as seeing "if we were Jewish enough." Wolff answered the questions exactly how you'd think a 15-year-old would answer them. It reminded me that he really is still 15, despite his role in a major movie and the fact that he is just starting out on his acting career. The interview led to some surprising stories about how the Coens worked as they shot the film on location in Minnesota. Stuhlbarg noted that the people seen at the synagogue were an actual congregation.

A Serious Man is a deep, thoughtful movie, combining misfortune and humor in a way that the Coen brothers have mastered. You can see how personal it is, from the setting based on their childhood to their Jewish heritage and tradition; it is clear how much influence Judaism has had on both them and the film. One audience member asked how non-Jewish audience members felt about the movie, and as one, I loved it. No matter what your religion, you can and should see this film.