Jesse Eisenberg continues to both astound and confuse me with many of the roles that he chooses. No matter what kind of character he happens to be playing though, there is no doubt that he puts his all into embodying the peculiarity of these kinds of stories. Riley Stearns' The Art of Self-Defense is a film that I have been relatively excited about for the past few months. There is nothing that intrigues me more than an indie comedy with an evident dark side and oh boy did this movie deliver that. Thankfully, there is so much to love about this film and I enjoyed it way more than I honestly expected, as it touches on various progressive themes while still providing hilarious writing. The Art of Self-Defense is surely one that will be sticking with me for a while and even though there are some obvious reasons why it might not work for some audiences, I adored this film in all of its strangeness.
A simple and reserved man named Casey (Jesse Eisenberg) lives by himself with his dog working a dull, low-level accounting job. When he is out buying dog food one night, he is attacked on the street by a gang of helmeted bikers. Casey then enrolls in a local dojo run by the unusual Sensei (Alessandro Nivola) in order to learn karate and how to defend himself by becoming a "man." Riley Stearns both wrote and directed this dark comedy and everything about its simple plot could not have been executed any better. This film truly has everything that an entry into this genre needs: strange cinematographic choices, a flat plot that somehow remains entertaining, and a barebones score that only adds to the awkwardness of it all. The script for this film is surprisingly perfect. Stearns was able to bring every little detail of this story together in such a plain way that provided for such a satisfying conclusion. Even though this film seems like it was shot in only a few days based on the few locations, it kept me wildly entertained for its entirety. Eisenberg's performance was amazing as well, as he is definitely born for these offputting and clumsy roles. Stearns' script brings all of these elements together, however, as the simple plot worked so effectively to deliver this film's final message. The majority of this movie can indeed be seen and predicted in the trailers, but what I enjoyed most about this story is how straightforward it came off as. There are not truly any deeper meanings behind some of this film's themes but rather they are explored at the surface in an easy-to-follow manner. I believe that is what makes this movie so outstanding; despite the lack of intense thinking afterward, Stearns does not meander around the message he is attempting to get the audience to understand.
The perfect execution of this film is only complimented by an unexpected message of misogyny and toxic masculinity. These overarching themes were stretched throughout this whole film and were eventually explored in full, making this movie's characters so well developed and engaging. As Casey learns more and more about Sensei and the type of dojo that he is running, he discovers a deep-rooted belief that men are somehow more capable and ferocious than women could ever be. Even though Casey does not necessarily believe everything that Sensei preaches, he would do anything to learn more about how to protect himself, the original reason for him learning karate. This personal conflict of belief vs. ignorance was so interesting to see and I'm very glad that his character chose the right path at the end, as predictable as it may have been. I also loved how this movie touches on toxic masculinity and shows its audience how dangerous this preference of gender can be. Anna (Imogen Poots) is the only woman at this local dojo and no matter how talented she may be, Sensei refuses to promote her to black belt simply because she is a woman. While this obviously makes for an uncomfortable environment, it was so interesting to see how these characters reacted to the Sensei's blatant misogyny and how they reacted to the shift in power at the end of the film. This is apparent in Casey too, as he proves that he can still be a man even if he is not the best at fighting or standing up for himself. Not every man can be an emotionless rock and this film shows that actually having sensitivity and feelings is perfectly okay. The Art of Self-Defense really is a flawless combination of themes about masculinity and fucked up, shocking plot twists which cement it as the black comedy that 2019 needs.
The Art of Self-Defense is an offbeat comedy that will clearly not fit the tastes of many viewers. While definitely targeted for a niche audience, I think that the people who do see this will enjoy it for its underlying message and humor. I, for one, absolutely enjoyed this movie and the weird way that it went about its plot. With stoically great performances and dry humor to be found in every line of dialogue, this has easily become one of my favorite comedies of the year.
My Rating: ★★★★
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