Context of the movie (with spoilers)
The movie follows two Jewish cousins who lost their grandmother a few months ago. She was Polish and had left the country after surviving the Holocaust.
They travel to Poland on a tour through Warsaw to reconnect with their roots, with the final stop being their grandmother's former home.
Both of them are in pain, but for different reasons—and they express it in completely different ways.
Benji, who was closer to their grandmother, seems to be struggling the most. He frequently gets triggered during the trip, openly expressing his emotions in front of the group—often making others uncomfortable. Despite this, he's a very likable person, which sparks some jealousy in Dave.
Dave, on the other hand (whom I related to the most), keeps his emotions to himself. He doesn't seem particularly affected by their grandmother's passing, possibly because they weren't that close. But deep down, he is suffering—just not for the same reason as Benji. His main concern is Benji's well-being, especially since Benji attempted suicide six months prior.
Unlike his cousin, Dave has a stable life—he's married, has a child, a steady job, and a clear sense of direction.
Personal thoughts (with spoilers)
While watching, I felt I could relate to Dave the most. Like him, I can be emotional (as he shows later in the movie), but I try not to show that to the world. I don't want to burden people with my emotions or problems, whether they're from the past or present.
For the past few months, I've been reading a lot about Stoicism, and I saw a bit of that in Dave too (though maybe I'm wrong). Not in the sense that he's emotionless—because that's not what Stoicism is about—but because he keeps his emotions under control and seems to have a clear direction in life. He doesn't seem lost, unlike Benji (not saying that's my case, lol).
Since Benji is the complete opposite—outspoken about his feelings in the moment—the movie made me wonder: Is there a "right" way to deal with emotions? According to Benji and others in the group, if we mourned sad events more openly, maybe they wouldn't happen as often. I'm not sure if I agree. Again, some Stoic ideas come to mind: we should allow ourselves to feel things, but we shouldn't let emotions take over completely. Bad things will inevitably happen, and we should be prepared for them. We can't prevent every sad event from occurring, whether in our own lives or in the world around us. What we can do is be kind, do what's needed to make things better, and move forward. We can grieve and feel pain, but we should return to reason as soon as possible—something Benji seems unable to do.
In the end, we see Dave returning to his stable life, embraced by his wife and daughter, while Benji is stranded at the airport, still searching for his direction. I think the movie wanted to leave us questioning whose life is better, but it also seemed to suggest that Dave's was. He never really questioned or complained about it (unless he's unhappy and just never says it out loud?). He was mostly concerned about Benji, and whenever he did have emotional outbursts, they were about him. That makes sense—Benji is emotionally fragile, and it's clearly a major source of chaos in his life.
That said, Benji's character felt a little flat. We don't get a full picture of why he's so emotional or what he's been through. Even his relationship with his grandmother—his main source of pain in the movie—isn't explored in much depth.
But overall, a great movie that really made me think—and inspired this first entry.
