A socially awkward and self-doubting young man decides to join an eccentric dojo after being attacked on the street.
Awkward, sarcastic, dark, misleadingly funny, but disturbingly dramatic under the surface, The Art of Self-Defense is a case study in numerous aspects, and choosing that particular martial art as a means to “prove” it brings a questionable and head-scratching outcome. Here it goes…
As per IMDb, writer/director Riley Stearns also trains and teaches Brazilian jiu-jitsu. The picture on the dojo’s wall is of Grandmaster Morihei Ueshiba Osensei, the founder of Aikido. In the same dojo, Sensei (Alessandro Nivola), while respecting Osensei and preaching his ways, teaches Karate. Taking for granted that Stearns knows they are three different martial arts and that he doesn’t undermine his audience’s intelligence, I come to the conclusion that the mix-up is deliberately placed there, and more particularly, in Casey’s head.
Other than the martial arts, quite a few things don’t add up. Without any spoilers, that particular punch at the office regarding the extremely mild consequences, the answering machine’s message, the night class, the characters comprising it, the commonly accepted old-fashioned patriarchy and misogyny, the dog(s) and how that relates to the film’s denouement, the Sensei himself… These, and many more, don’t connect properly in the end, leading me to believe that Stearns follows a “Lynchian” storytelling.
I can’t say much more, and I don’t want to. Stearns has created a dark psychological comedy/drama that you’ll either love or loathe. Expect surrealistic reactions and events that, when thought of in a real-case scenario, would create emotional contradictions. Jesse Eisenberg, Alessandro Nivola, and Imogen Potts impress with the way they choose to conceal, implode, and explode their emotions, delivering the unpredictable performances the obscure narrative demands. I hope you appreciate it.
P.S. Eisenberg and Potts collaborated again the same year in yet another allegorical/psychological film that deserves your attention. Vivarium (2019)
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