So, he seeks out help through various Rabbis only to be told a story with a message he misses completely. The story is about a dentist who finds a message on the back of a man’s teeth. After desperately trying to find meaning in this, he speaks to a Rabbi. The Rabbi gives him some generic advice and sends him on his way. His life returns to normal and he’s happy again. The message, while generic, is that sometimes actions have no reason, they exist independently of other events. It’s only after you stop trying to understand the unexplainable that you’ll be happy. But Larry ignores this story and its message. After many struggles, a few high points and some low points, he’s finally at a decent spot. His son had his bar-mitzvah. He’s close to obtaining tenure. And in this moment he shows a sign of needless weakness and is immediately punished for it. His intentions here are to take the easy way out, because he’s endured so much already. His motivation is the allure of sweeping a problem under the rug, and the outcome is nightmarish and immediate. This is one of their finest films because of how thoroughly the concept is hammered into it. With their consistent use of cinematographers and multiple trademarks, identifying when you’re watching a Coen film is easy. Their style has even been defined in a dictionary. But the structuring of the story, scene by scene, is something worth paying attention to when watching any of their films to get a better understanding of the true definition of Coenesque.