Crime, Comedy, and Chaos: The Early Cinema of the Coen Brothers

Crime, Comedy, and Chaos: The Early Cinema of the Coen Brothers is a five-week film class led by Andre Puca, focused on the Coen brothers’ early work from the 1980s and 1990s. The course explores the filmmakers’ distinctive combination of genre experimentation, dark comedy, precise visual craftsmanship, moral ambiguity, and Americana mythology.

Each session examines one film. Meetings begin with a 30-minute presentation covering the film’s historical context, production background, and major themes, followed by a screening and open discussion. Participants will consider the Coens’ narrative methods, visual style, recurring motifs, and the ways the films develop in conversation with one another.

When: Five Tuesdays, November 10 through December 8. The page lists the sessions as November 10, November 17, November 24, December 1, and December 8.

Showtimes: Each class runs from 10:00 a.m. to 1:15 p.m.

Run time: Three hours and 15 minutes per session.

Instructor: Andre Puca teaches film and media studies as Senior Affiliated Faculty at Emerson College. He holds a B.A. in English from Cornell University and an MFA in Film Studies from Boston University, and has also taught at Babson College. His academic work includes research on American independent cinema, as well as a publication on Italian comedian and director Massimo Troisi. He has previously led three Coolidge Education courses, including two on Alfred Hitchcock.

Tickets: Price not available. The page offers the class as a package available for online purchase.

Venue: Coolidge Corner Theatre.