With Jesse Eisenberg & Kieran Culkin playing close cousins in ‘A REAL PAIN’ we look at cinemas best (& worst) family pairings…

 

They say you can’t choose your family. Unless, of course, you’re a Hollywood casting director hiring actors to play relatives. In the new comedy-drama ‘A Real Pain’, Jesse Eisenberg (who also directs and writes it) stars alongside an Oscar-tipped Kieran Culkin as a pair of first cousins who travel to Europe together to reconnect with their family’s Jewish heritage.

Eisenberg and Culkin are well-cast as the close relatives, each one a distinct character in their own right but with a shared set of neuroses and physical traits that makes them perfectly believable as cousins. Hollywood has a bit of a spotty history when it comes to casting actors as family members. Some are totally believable, while, with some others, the only thing they could remotely be seen to have in common is an agent.

MOST BELIEVABLE ON-SCREEN RELATIVES

Home Alone
Speaking of Kieran Culkin, he has memorable roles in the first two ‘Home Alone’ movies as the bladder-challenged cousin, Fuller. Kieran, of course, is the younger brother (by two years) of Macaulay Culkin, who plays our hero Kevin. Screen relatives don’t get more credible than that.

Donnie Darko
Again, if you have a pair of sibling actors, you should avail of every opportunity to cast them as family members. In this 2001 cult fave, Donnie’s (Jake Gyllenhaal) sister, Elizabeth, is played by his real life sister, Maggie Gyllenhaal. The extended Gyllanhaal clan like working together: Jake starred with his brother-in-law Peter Sarsgaard in Apple’s ‘Presumed Innocent’, while Maggie directed Peter in ‘The Lost Daughter’.

The Addams Family
In 2026, the Oscars will introduce an award for Best Casting. Sadly that’s too late for the genius whoever put together the casts for this early ‘90s classic. Raul Julia and Anjelica Huston are spookily believable as the parents of Pugsley (Jimmy Workman) and, especially Wednesday (Christina Ricci). Special semi-related shoutout to another ‘90s Ricci movie, ‘Mermaids’, which perfectly cast Cher as the mother of a pair of sisters played by Ricci and Winona Ryder. Perfection.

Panic Room:
Kristen Stewart was only 12 when she had her major breakthrough playing the daughter of Jodie Foster in this David Fincher thriller. Not only do Foster and Stewart look alike, they also have the same slight but athletic, flinty but vulnerable, smart but funny screen presence.

Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade:
Okay, so in reality, Sean Connery was only 12 years older than Harrison Ford when he was cast as Indiana Jones’ father, Henry, in this much-loved threequel. Maybe it’s just the magnetic star quality of both men, but somehow it totally works, their tense but affectionate father-son sparring bringing a real magic to the film. Special mention also to River Phoenix, who plays the young Indy in the brilliant opening scene of the movie. He’s almost more Harrison Ford than Ford himself. Fun fact: Phoenix had earlier played Ford’s son in The Mosquito Coast (1986).

LEAST BELIEVABLE ON-SCREEN RELATIVES

This Is Where I Leave You:
Just because you can cast every hot actor in Hollywood to play family members doesn’t mean you should. In this family ensemble drama, Jane Fonda plays the mother of four siblings played by (deep breath) Tina Fey (!), Adam Driver (!!), Jason Bateman (!!!) and Corey Stoll (!!!!). Some great actors, no doubt, but you can never get past how dissimilar they all are.

The Power of the Dog:
Benedict Cumberbatch and Jesse Plemons…as BROTHERS?! Come on, Hollywood.

Twins:
Yes, we know it’s the point of the movie, but even taking that into consideration, there’s no way science will ever advance to a point where the same genetic material can produce Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny De Vito as brothers. They’re barely credible as the same species, never mind the same family.

A Bad Mom’s Christmas:
A fabulous cast full of fabulous ladies, but we must take issue with one of the mother-daughter casting decisions: Her Royal Highness Christine Baranski as the mam of…Mila Kunis?! Come on, nobody is buying that.

Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again
This will never not be absolutely hilarious: Cher playing the mother of Meryl Streep. Of course it works within the camp madness of the movie, but you’ll never watch it the same again once you know Cher is only three years older than Streep in real life. Then again, despite what the internet tells us, do any of us have conclusive proof that Cher isn’t in fact an ageless sorceress that has been alive for centuries?

Words : Declan Cashin

 

A REAL PAIN is in cinemas from January 8th