After the failure of his career, his marriage, and his suicide attempt, world-class grouch Boris Yellnikoff, (Larry David) spends his days insulting the small children unfortunate enough to study chess with him and irritating his still-loyal friends with his never-ending tirades about the worthlessness of absolutely everything.

A former Columbia Professor and self-proclaimed genius who came close to winning a Nobel Prize for Quantum Mechanics, Boris fancies himself the only one who fully comprehends the meaningless of all human aspirations, and the pitch-black chaos of the universe.  He meets a young girl from the south and her family and no one gets along in the entanglements that follow.

This is a new comedy from Woody Allen also starring Ed Begley Jr., Patricia Clarkson, Michael McKean and Rachel Wood.