Inside Llewyn Davis was until last night the only movie by the Coen brothers that I’ve watched. Miller’s Crossing, No Country for Old Men and Fargo have been in my watchlist for months but I ended up watching A Serious Man first all by accident.

I must say I didn’t like Inside Llewyn Davis that much the first time I watched it. The soundtrack was amazing and the overall winter feeling was breath-taking but it still felt unfinished, it lacked something, but I wasn’t sure what was it, not knowing better I labeled it “overrated”. It wasn’t until my second watch that I was able to see the true beauty of it. A Serious Man has left me with a similar feeling. However, this time I can appreciate the film for the same reason I doubted Lewyn Davis.

We follow the life of Larry Gopnik; Jewish, professor, husband, father of two, brother of a psychotic/depressed man and neighbor of man taking space from his property. His wife ask for a divorce because she wants to marry another man, his children don’t appreciate his efforts to keep the family in place and at work Larry deals with a moral dilemma.

I don’t think I have ever watched a film so infuriating and hilarious at the same time. A Serious Man might be awkward, and it can even seem inconclusive because of the many questions raised throughout the film that in the end are left unanswered, but if you think about it it’s exactly in those questions where its beauty can be found. We see how Larry’s world sinks without a clear explanation and by telling us nothing the Coen brothers don’t only make us sympathize with Larry, we actually feel his struggle. Larry is a man that wants to do things right following the rules of God, but as he seeks for help in people that surrounds him he finds more problems instead of solutions. This left me with a couple of questions: why bad things happen to good people? And ultimately, do atheists live a quieter life?