Considering the subject matter of A Real Pain and the confidence with which writer/director/star Jesse Eisenberg pulls it off, one might assume that it’s based on a memoir or novel.

But no, this is original material territory, and in tandem with comparably assured visuals and strong ensemble-wide performances, the total package suggests the filmmaker is just that — a self-contained screen artist of the highest caliber.

Though perhaps a bit too in his wheelhouse, Eisenberg is smartly cast as straight-laced husband and father David. And while Kieran Culkin likewise may hew a little close to his Roman Roy in Succession in this portrayal of David’s cousin Benji, the filter-free wild card provides a strong foil for his buttoned-up kin as they honor their recently deceased, Holocaust survivor grandmother’s wish and visit her Polish hometown and other historical Jewish sites.

Eerily similar to this year’s Treasure on a narrative level, Eisenberg’s film diverges from that misfire by featuring a chemistry-rich duo at its core, one flanked by strong supporting players. In addition to an alluring Jennifer Grey as a recent divorcée, the cousin's tour group includes Kurt Egyiawan (Beasts of No Nation) as a Rwandan genocide survivor turned Jewish convert, and Will Sharp (The White Lotus) as their amiable British historian tour guide.

As the group visits Holocaust sites, a sense of reverence is sustained even as Culkin injects many of the encounters with disarming humor to prevent the experience from growing too depressing. But beneath his clown ways are indeed tears, and Eisenberg excels at sprinkling in some emotionally rich revelations about Benji and their family along the way.

This blending of tones within assured yet appropriately non-flashy technical elements sets A Real Pain apart from the bulk of its recent dramedy peers, and with merely two features to his name, Eisenberg has firmly established himself as a filmmaker to watch.

Grade: B-plus. Rated R. Now playing at the Fine Arts Theatre.

(Photo: Searchlight Pictures)