The Art of Self-Defense

Casey is practically invisible. He is sensitive and lonely. He listens to soft rock, dreams about travelling to France and his only friend is his dachshund dog. Colleagues make fun of him but still, he has no enemies. But one day he is brutally mugged and hardly survives. As a way of recovery from trauma, he starts learning karate. He quickly grows in the dojo hierarchy and thus learns how to be a "real man" (an alpha male listens to heavy metal, drinks black coffee and owns a German shepherd, not a wiener-dog!). The Art of Self-Defense is a strong statement in a discussion on disappearing masculinity and access to guns in the US. It is also an exquisite joke on a traditional understanding of gender differences. Thanks to perfect casting of Jesse Eisenberg, whose facial expression equals that of genius of dead-pan comedy, Buster Keaton, this story of American individualism pushed to the extreme turns truly sarcastic and funny.