Falsani , the author of the book The Dude Abides: The Gospel According to the Coen Brothers, says that though the brothers' films — full of violence and deceit — might not hew to traditional views of right and wrong, taken as a whole, they paint a clear picture.

"People say their worlds are chaotic, but I see a definite rhythm to good and bad," Falsani says. "If you do something, there is an effect. When you make a choice and you make the wrong choice, you're going to get it in their world. And then sometimes, as in the case of A Serious Man, even if you don't make the wrong choice, you still might get it."

Set in the Minnesota town where they grew up, in 1967 — the year that Joel would have made his bar mitzvah — A Serious Man is, according to Falsani, the Coen brothers' most self-referential film, and also their most overtly religious.

Read or listen to it all.

Filed under: * Culture-Watch • Movies & Television • Religion & Culture

Registered members must log in to comment.