An American Pickle movie review: A short story adaptation that’s unwarranted

An American Pickle didn’t warrant a movie adaptation

On August 6th, Seth Rogen’s new movie, An American Pickle, was released exclusively on HBO’s new streaming platform, HBO Max. The film is a theatrical adaptation of the short story Sell Out by Simon Rich about an Ashkenazi Jewish immigrant that gets trapped and preserved in a vat of pickles for 100 years. When he’s finally discovered, he is introduced to his last living descendant.

The film stars Rogen in the dual roles of Herschel, the Jewish immigrant, and Ben, a Brooklyn native and Herschel’s last living descendant who’s developing an app that will allow consumers to research which companies engage in ethical business practices.

Although Hershel goes to live with Ben and the two men seem to hit it off as Ben introduces Hershel to the wonders of the future (seltzer water, Amazon’s Alexa, etc.) Herschel’s worldviews quickly make the men clash.

After the men are arrested for getting into a fight with construction workers who are putting up a billboard for Russian vodka (Herschel’s home country Slupsk was destroyed by Russian Cossacks) which is overlooking the gravesite of Herschel’s late wife, Sarah, Ben has trouble securing an investment for his ethics-based app.

After being berated by Herschel for spending so much time working on an app with the silly-sounding name Boop Bop rather than upholding their family’s legacy, Ben kicks him out of his apartment. With no way to support himself, Herschel starts selling pickles that unbeknownst to his clientele have been pulled from garbage cans throughout Brooklyn.

To Ben’s disdain, Herschel’s business catches the attention of a local food blogger, and Herschel’s fame skyrockets. What ensues is a one-sided battle for revenge as Ben attempts to dismantle Herschel’s pickle business while watching Hershel adapt well to the present-day.

An American Pickle review

Although I knew An American Pickle would be a comedy, the trailer gave off the impression that the film was also a heartfelt tale about two men that were trying to navigate an unfamiliar world. Both men are dealing with great losses, Herschel’s mourning his wife and the son he never knew while Ben is grieving his deceased parents, and so I got the impression that the film would be about how these men navigate the world together.

Unfortunately, I feel like I got Neighbors 3: An American Pickle instead.

While this time around, the feud was relatively one-sided with Herschel not getting his chance at revenge until the end of the movie, the basic premise is well-trodden territory for Rogen.

Although the movie does serve up an interesting take on the potential issues that a time traveler would face upon arriving in another time period with a different worldview, there really isn’t that much else that this movie has to offer.

Even when An American Pickle does try to hit emotional beats, it fails because of the outlandish actions that drive the film’s core conflict.

If you’re a fan of Seth Rogen’s work and looking for a lighthearted movie to enjoy for an hour and a half, then you might enjoy An American Pickle. However, if you’re looking for a movie that adds something to the time-travel genre while also being a touching story about grief, An American Pickle may not be for you.

Have you seen An American Pickle? Did you enjoy it? Let us know.

An American Pickle is now available to stream exclusively on HBO Max.