Reviving this ancient thread so I can hype a movie I just saw today.
"The Worst Person in the World" is a Norwegian Movie and would be a top film for me in any year (it would seem silly to say best 2022 at this juncture though that is true, so far)
First a link to the profile and rating of it over on Rotten Tomatoes:
The Worst Person in the World is a modern dramedy about the quest for love and meaning in contemporary Oslo. It chronicles four years in the life of Julie (Renate Reinsve), a young woman who navigates the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path, leading her to take...
www.rottentomatoes.com
I really enjoy great cinema as an artform; perhaps it follows accordingly that I can be a somewhat demanding/mean reviewer.
When I rate movies out of 10, I consider 'average' to be 6.5; rarely accord a movie more than 8.
Perhaps its simply the derth of great movie experiences over the course of the pandemic, but I was exceptionally pleased here and I would give this 9/10.
At 2hr 8m its not a short movie, but neither did I find it exceptionally taxing time-wise.
I won't go into at great length so as not to spoil it for anyone who may wish to see it........but a brief description and review follows.
****
The movie follows the life of a young woman in Oslo from roughly age 22 to 32, mostly focusing on her love life, but also her flitting between different possible careers/educational pursuits and generally
being indecisive and unsure of herself, particularly under pressure, or when bored.
The movie gives you a look at a person who to many fritters away good relationships and time and money invested in education with seeming whimsicality.
But it also manages to give you a sense of real empathy for a young woman who just feels so unsure of herself, of what she wants, and having perhaps a tangible fear of making a wrong choice.
It can leave you ready to cringe at her decision making and yet sympathetic with her at the same time.
What I love about a great movie is finding a window to see the world through the eyes of another person, and also another culture or place. I find it interesting to see and experience the world in a way that frankly, I don't.
The movie has some good post-card shots of Oslo, it gives you some real sense of the cultural zeitgeist there too..........
It goes that all while letting you see the world through a character w/versions that exist in virtually every society and culture.
*****
The movie is currently playing 'The Varsity' with 4 screenings daily.