An American Pickle made me cringe in advance. The premise of this comedy, the first original film from HBO Max, sounded vastly unpromising. Seth Rogen, playing a bearded, old-world Jewish man, falls into a pickle vat and is preserved there for a century, then awakens to our modern world, where he meets his only living descendent, a clean-shaven schlub also played by Rogen. What a stereotype-filled crapfest, I thought. Even the title seemed crudely obvious.
To my surprise, however, the film starts on an inspired note. In a prologue set in his homeland, Herschel Greenbaum (Rogen) labors as a ditch digger and courts the beguiling Sarah (Sarah Snook).
Director Brandon Trost, a regular Rogen collaborator and a longtime cinematographer, goes all out visually here; the prologue closely resembles actual vintage film footage. Given the aura of authenticity, it’s a surprise and a kick whenever there’s a sight gag or goofy line,...
To my surprise, however, the film starts on an inspired note. In a prologue set in his homeland, Herschel Greenbaum (Rogen) labors as a ditch digger and courts the beguiling Sarah (Sarah Snook).
Director Brandon Trost, a regular Rogen collaborator and a longtime cinematographer, goes all out visually here; the prologue closely resembles actual vintage film footage. Given the aura of authenticity, it’s a surprise and a kick whenever there’s a sight gag or goofy line,...
- 8/8/2020
- by Mark Benedict
- We Got This Covered
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