Tag: Norwegian

TIFF11 REVIEW: Oslo, 31. August [Oslo, August 31st] [2011]

Jared Mobarak

“I want you to understand” Memory and nostalgia—these are the things Joachim Trier sought when creating his dark, hopeful, and depressing love letter to his hometown. Rather than use that word, however, he made a point in his Q&A at the Toronto International Film Festival to call it the place he was born. Every city in the world is remembered by its citizens and ex-pats, they reminiscence about good times, how they felt, or how they miss it. The opening to Oslo, 31. august [Oslo, August 31st] is a collection…

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REVIEW: Trolljegeren [TrollHunter] [2010]

Jared Mobarak

“Does anyone here believe in God or Jesus?” Forget the fairy tales. This is what Hans (Otto Jespersen) says in deadpan to the young college students that decide to follow him around. All of their giggles and winking smirks toward their camera at the mention of trolls only make this hardened man want to tell them the truth more. He has been at it too long, has been thrown around and clawed at too often, and the pay simply sucks. Towing the company line until he no longer can, Hans…

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BNFF11 REVIEW: The Frost [2009]

Jared Mobarak

“What is your bloody wish!” I am not familiar with Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen or his play “Little Eyolf”, on which writer/director Ferran Audí based his film The Frost. Doing some quick research shows that he was a man who wrote about morality and questions of love and loss, so I can assume Audí instilled his spirit since those aspects play a huge role in the film. Viewing it at the Buffalo Niagara Film Festival, the story actually reminded me a lot of William Shakespeare’s “MacBeth”, feelings of guilt and…

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REVIEW: O’ Horten [2007]

Jared Mobarak

“There’s a man smoking a pipe in the middle of the taxiway” There is no more appropriate a name for the lead role in Bent Hamer’s film O’ Horten then Odd Horten. For a man of modesty, generally hiding in the corners of life to avoid much interaction or attention, he finds himself in the middle of some very odd happenings, all in a matter of a few days following his retirement. After 40 some years as a locomotive engineer in Norway, his age has hit the year for a…

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