The Bothersome Man
Directed by Jens Lien, this masterpiece is reminiscent of the kind of discontent only a post-modern Shakespeare could conjure up. A comedy and tragedy, where the gruesome somehow is simultaneously as humorous as it is horrific. It feels like a more subdued, Scandinavian take on Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Our hero, played by the brilliant Trond Fausa, finds himself delivered to a new city where a new life waits for him while all its denizens seem perfectly content in their limbo. A place built for those as a homily for what a life should look like, rather than a life lived. It is Norwegian with subtitles, and captures in farce a facet of what it means to be Norwegian. This film is one of my personal favorites, despite its relatable feelings of isolation while being amongst others and despite its occasional, yet hardly gratuitous gore. Yet I have to admit that this film perchance may be not for you. If that’s the case, you are among the few.