Kieran Culkin Is Great In A Real Pain, But Don't Overlook Jesse Eisenberg's Incredible Monologue

Kieran Culkin has been getting a lot of much-deserved praise for his turn in A Real Pain, but Jesse Eisenberg also gives a terrific performance in the film — especially in one scene. Eisenberg and Culkin lead the cast of A Real Pain as a pair of cousins, David and Benji Kaplan, who embark on a Holocaust tour across Poland to reconnect with their late grandmother’s roots. Along the way, the pressing issues in their relationship come to bear and some hard truths spill out.

Culkin has been nominated for just about every Best Supporting Actor honor in Hollywood: the Academy Award, the Critics’ Choice Movie Award, the Screen Actors Guild Award, the BAFTA Award, and the Golden Globe. Eisenberg has gotten some recognition as the film’s writer, having won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and scored an Oscar nod for Best Original Screenplay, but it seems as though his work on-screen is being overlooked. Culkin gives a fantastic performance in A Real Pain, but it shouldn’t overshadow Eisenberg’s.

Jesse Eisenberg’s Dinner Monologue In A Real Pain Is An Acting Masterclass

It’s An Emotional Rollercoaster

Dave, Benji, and James sit at a dinner table in A Real Pain

Midway through A Real Pain, while the tour group is enjoying dinner, Benji leaves the table to go to the bathroom. It’s the first time Benji has left the other characters alone for an extended period of screen time, and it gives them a chance to discuss their true feelings about him — especially Dave. Marcia and Eloge can both see that, deep down, Benji is a good person dealing with a lot of pain, while Mark fails to recognize his charm. They probe Dave for a bit more information about Benji and he launches into a tirade of oversharing.

Dave says that he loves Benji, but also confesses that he hates him sometimes, and that he’s jealous of his confidence and outspokenness and the effect he has on people. The monologue culminates in the shocking revelation that Benji attempted suicide six months earlier. Eisenberg nails this monologue; it’s an acting masterclass. He jumps all over the emotional spectrum, seamlessly switching between dry humor, raw honesty, selfish rage, and a deep well of sadness — it all feels so real. It would make a perfect Oscar clip if Eisenberg was in the running for Best Actor, as he deserves to be.

A Real Pain’s Dinner Scene Is The Key To Understanding The Movie

It Lays Bare All The Issues In Dave & Benji’s Relationship

This dinner scene is one of A Real Pain’s most important sequences. It’s the key to understanding the whole movie, because it lays bare all the issues in Dave and Benji’s relationship and what they need to overcome before the end of A Real Pain. Dave is frustrated by constantly being upstaged and overshadowed by Benji, which is exactly what happens when Benji’s impromptu piano performance cuts him off in the middle of the monologue.