Pioneer/Pionér (2013); thriller drama film review

Norwegian poster artwork for the drama thriller Pioneer/Pionér.

Norwegian Nonpareil by Linh

Norwegian director and writer Erik Skjoldbjærg’s (Insomnia,Prozac Nation) most recent film Pioneer/Pionér is in the early development stages for an American re-make with George Clooney attached as a producer. Skjoldbjærg’s original Norwegian version has hit and miss aspects yet is still a compelling drama thriller. The film is inspired by true events where the discovery of large oil and gas resources at the bottom of the North Sea in the 1970s, sparked a collaborative effort between Norway and America to establish underwater pipelines to transport the oil ashore.

Pioneer/Pionér is set in the late 1970s and early 1980s, opening with archival footage of oil being discovered off the Norwegian coast. As Norway do not have experienced deep-sea divers and technicians to do the task of testing the seabed for underwater pipeline construction, an American team are brought over to train the Norwegians. US deep-sea divers Mike (Wes Bentley), Ronald (Jonathan LaPaglia) and supervisor Ferris (Stephen Lang) arrive to train the Norwegian team which includes brothers Petter (Aksel Hennie) and Knut (André Eriksen). After the teams undergo a series of tests and exercises, an actual dive into the North Sea is organised. Unfortunately, Knut loses oxygen during the dive and Petter is unable to resuscitate him. Petter is determined to seek the truth behind his brother’s death, which leads him on a dangerous path involving distrust between Norway and the United States, corrupt oil company executives and government cover-ups.

Pioneer has a brilliant first half which creates a claustrophobic feel for the underwater scenes and adds some humour to the training and testing sessions. The second half moves the action away from the sea to land where Petter, a solid performance from Aksel Hennie, is using old style methods (no Internet or any twenty-first century technology) like breaking and entering, to investigate why nobody took responsibility for his brother’s death and no safety measures were in place for the diving team.

The French electronic music duo, Air, contributes to much of the film’s atmospheric moods and underwater intensities with their psycho-acoustic harmonies and electronica style to express the fear, danger and suspense. Overall, this film is akin to an old-style 1970s conspiracy thriller with many questions left unanswered, which might frustrate audiences accustomed to more fast-paced and spoon-fed action thrillers that Hollywood serves up. Hopefully, George Clooney produces something equally good or better for the American re-make.

Mike (Wes Bentley) and Knut (Andre Eriksen) face-off in the film Pioneer/Pionér. Image: Magnolia Pictures.

Director: Erik Skjoldbjærg

Writers: Hans Gunnarson, Katharina valen Zeiner, Cathinka Nicolaysen, Nikolaj Frobenius, Erik Skjoldbjærg

Cast: Aksel Hennie, Wes Bentley, Stephen Lang, Jonathan LaPaglia, Stephanie Stigman, Ane Dahl Torp, André Eriksen, Jørgen Langhelle

Producers: Asle Vatn, Christian Fredrick Martin, Raimond Goebel, Mimmi Spång, Rebecka LaFrenz, Lone Korslund, Jessica Ask, Marko Röhr, Ilkka Matila, Antoine Simkine

Cinematographer: Jallo Faber

Music Composers: Air (Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel)

Film Editors: Frida Eggum Micahelsen, Jonas Aarø

Production: Karl Júlíusson (production designer), Louise Drake (set decorator)

Costume Designer: Anne Pederson

Languages: Norwegian and English with English subtitles

Running Time: 1 hour and 50 minutes

The Hour of the Lynx/I Lossens Time (2013), crime drama film review

Danish poster artwork for the film The Hour of the Lynx/ I Lossens Time

Probing Perceptions by Linh

The Hour of the Lynx/I Lossens Time is a Danish film adaptation of Per Olov Enquist’s stage play of the same name about two women who join forces to fight the evil overtaking a young man’s mind and destroying his soul. The title is derived from a legend of the mystical twenty-fifth hour of the day, which belongs to the mysterious lynx. This title is apt as it explores and challenges time and space beyond human perception in relation to memory and mental health, which are all linked in this film adaptation.

The film opens with a teenager named Drengen (Frederik Christian Johansen) who is seen walking around a rural village while rambling on incoherently. He arrives at a cottage where he brutally slaughters an elderly couple before attempting to set himself on fire. The film then jumps to Drengen at a high security psychiatric hospital where he has attempted suicide as “instructed by God”. A psychiatrist named Lisbeth (Signe Egholm Olsen) who helps inmates by assigning them with pets is charged with assisting Drengen and involves him in her project by giving him a cat. However, she ends up enlisting the help of Helen (Sofie Gråbøl) a female priest after a series of incidents at the hospital that threatened to shut down her project. The two women work together to delve deeper into the dark recesses of Drengen’s mind and uncovers something more shocking than they expect with life-changing consequences.

The lead cast are stellar in their performances and Johansen as the troubled Drengen is particularly mesmerising. This film is compelling and weaves together conflicting themes of science and religion, faith and love, mental and spiritual health with clever editing and narrative structure. The film has multiple perspectives and is initially narrated by the female priest Helen but the audience is invited into the minds of other characters. Another interesting aspect of this film is the use of time and memory as a story-telling device such as the flashbacks from Drengen’s childhood. The film's subject matter may be a bit dark but is solid material when exploring such profound themes.

Director: Søren Kragh-Jacobsen

Writers: Søren Kragh-Jacobsen (screenplay), Tobias Lindholm (screenplay), Jonas T. Bengtsson (screenplay), Per Olov Enquist (stage play)

Cast: Sofie Gråbøl, Signe Egholm Olsen, Frederik Christian Johansen, Lia Boysen, Søren Malling, Jens Jørn Spottag, Susan Olsen, Börje Ahlstedt, Henrik Birch, Julie Carlsen, Maria Rossing, Rasmus Elton, Pelle Falk Krusbæk, Nis Bank-Mikkelsen

Producers: Bo Ehrhardt, Per-Erik Svensson, Anna Croneman, Lars Bredo Rahbek, Anna Björk, Kristina Kornum, Mikkel Jersin

Cinematographer: Lasse Frank Johannessen

Music Composer: Tobia Hylander, Flemming Nordkrog

Film Editor: Peter Brandt

Production: Jette Lehmann (production designer), Christina Kallan (set decorator)

Costume Designers: Margrethe Rasmussen, Rikke Tvilum, Lena Winther

Languages: Danish and Swedish with English subtitles

Running Time: 1 hour and 40 minutes

Waltz For Monica/ Monica Z (2013), drama biography film review

Swedish poster artwork for the biographical drama Waltz With Monica/Monica Z.

Swedish Sensation by Linh

Waltz For Monica/Monica Z is a biopic loosely based on the personal and professional life of the popular Swedish jazz singer and actress Monica Zetterlund. Monica (Edda Magnasson) is a 23 year-old telephone operator from a small town named Hagfors in Sweden who lives with her parents and five year old daughter named Eva-Lena (Nadja Christiansson). Monica often dreams of being part of the vibrant and exciting jazz scene in Stockholm, until one day in the winter of 1960, an English jazz pianist named Leonard Feather (Ralph Bernard) invites her to New York. This trip changes Monica’s life and she begins her triumphant yet turbulent journey to stardom as a jazz singer performing in jazz clubs in New York and Stockholm.

The film depicts the usual dilemmas entertainers face when juggling their career and personal life. Monica is a talented and beautiful singer who quickly learns the trade-offs and sacrifices made to stay in the music business. Her career skyrockets while her personal life nosedives as she fails to please her father and commit to her lover while raising a young daughter.

Edda Magnasson is brilliant in the role of Monica and she beautifully sings all the songs in the film. The 1960s costumes in the film are gorgeous and the music wonderfully captures the golden age of the jazz era. Waltz For Monica won four Guldbagge Awards: Best Actress, Best Direction, Best Supporting Actor and Best Costume Design.

Director: Per Fly

Writers: Peter Birro (screen adaptation), Per Fly (adaptation collaborator)

Cast: Edda Magnasson, Sverrir Gudnason, Kjell Bergqvist, Cecilia Ljung, Vera Vitali, Johannes Wanselow, Ralph Bernard, Oskar Thunberg, Randall D. Ingram, Rob Morgan, Amelia Fowler, Clinton Ingram, Harry Friedländer, Andréa Ager-Hanssen, Nadja Christiansson, David Hellenius, Jörgen Thorsson, Hanna Ullerstam, Henrik Ståhl, Anna Harling

Producers: Jessica Ask, Lena Rehnberg, Tory Lenosky, Anna Carlsten

Cinematographer: Eric Kress

Music Composer: Peter Nordahl

Film Editor: Åsa Mossberg

Production: Josefin Åsberg (production designer), Kelly McGehee (art director), Amy Williams (set decorator)

Costume Designer: Kicki Ilander

Languages: Swedish, English with English subtitles

Running Time: 1 hour and 50 minutes

The 100 Year-old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared/Hundraåringen Som Klev Ut Genom Fönstret Och Försvann (2013), comedy adventure film review

The poster artwork for comedy adventure film The 100 Year-old Man Who Climbed Out A Window and Disappeared.

Charming Centenarian by Linh

The 100 Year-old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared is a film adaptation of the book by Swedish author Jonas Jonasson and directed by Felix Herngren. The film is narrated in English with the majority of the film in Swedish and English with English subtitles. The film spans the main character’s life from childhood to the present, with the narration running cleverly in chronological order as the present day action takes place. The past and present versions of Allan Karlsson reveals how his parents’ influences and advice have shaped him as an individual who has discovered life is full of richness and beauty if you are not afraid to take risks.

The 100 Year-old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared is an adventure comedy about a senior named Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson) who is still mentally alert and physically fit despite his age. When Allan is soon to turn 100 years old, he ends up in a retirement home. While his carers plan a party to celebrate his 100th birthday, Allan shows no interest in the party so he steps out the window and disappears. Allan then finds himself at a bus stop where he unwittingly takes possession of a suitcase filled with money from a criminal gang who chase him across Sweden. The police are also chasing the criminals and suspect Allan’s disappearance might be linked to the criminals’ drug-running. Allan embarks on a Forrest Gump-like adventure through flashbacks and in the present day he befriends a train station master named Julius (Iwar Wiklander), Benny the mature age university student (David Wiberg), Gunilla (Mia Skäringer) and her elephant. Through flashbacks, the audience is shown how Allan has always been having adventures throughout his life, as he meets some of history’s most notable and notorious world leaders including Harry S. Truman, Joseph Stalin, and Winston Churchill.

This film is upbeat and has some unexpected surprises yet is dark and thought-provoking. Gustafsson is excellent in the role of Allan, and audiences will find him endearing and affable as the fearless and unassuming centenarian who likes to blow things up. This film won a Guldbagge Award (Swedish equivalent to an Oscar) in the Audience Award category, and was nominated for Best Actor, Best Make-up and Best Music.

Director: Felix Herngren

Writers: Felix Herngren (screenplay), Hans Ingemansson (screenplay), Jonas Jonasson (book)

Cast: Robert Gustafsson, Iwar Wiklander, David Wiberg, Mia Skäringer, Jens Hultén, Bianca Cruzeiro, Alan Ford, Sven Lönn, David Shackleton, Georg Nikoloff, Sibylle Bernardin, Simon Säppenen, Manuel Dubra, Kerry Shale, Philip Rosch

Producers: Maria Dahlin, Sigurjon Sighvastsson, Pontus Edgren, Felix Herngren, Patrick Nebout, Malte Forssell, Henrik Jansson-Schweizer, Joshua Mehr, Anna Knochenhauer, Eiffel Mattsson, Hans Lönnerheden

Cinematographer: Göran Hallberg (director of photography)

Original Music Composer: Matti Bye

Film Editor: Henrik Källberg

Production: Mikael Varhelyi (production designer), Christian Olander (art director), Piroska Szabady (art director)

Costume Designer: Madeleine Thor

Languages: Swedish, English with English subtitles

Running Time: 1 hour and 54 minutes