On this page - OSLO STORIES TRILOGY: SEX | DREAMS | LOVE

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Performances are unusually understated and naturalistic. While Harr's manager is quietly shocked, he's also impressed by the sweep's lack of inhibitions. Roise plays him as intrigued by his experience, so he genuinely doesn't understand why his wife is so upset. Forberg plays her with barely contained emotions, feeling like she doesn't know her husband after more than two decades together. Together, they must confront conflicting feelings of guilt, regret and remorse.

While it's very talky, the film also finds insight into the power of expectations and restrictions. The sweep's wife wishes he simply didn't want to have sex with someone else, regardless of how it makes her feel. But he feels intimacy is in being completely open and honest. The idea is that it's impossible to promise not to be attracted to someone, but you can control how you respond. And perhaps jealousy is another emotion that needs to be addressed.

themes, language

30.Jul.25

While her voice does much of the work off-screen, remaining casually conversational as Johanne recounts the story, Overbye has terrific presence as an alert young women who is thoughtfully sifting through her desires while also developing her ability to express herself creatively. Sharing her story brings Johanne closer to Kristin, and it also opens up a dialog between Kristin and Karin, played beautifully by Overbye, Torp and Jacobsen to inventively explore generational attitudes.

As the film progresses, it reveals more of Johanne's experiences through her specific point of view. Most powerful is the way releasing her story to others changes Johanne's perspective. She notes that thoughts and dreams can be whatever you want them to be, but they change when you let someone else see them. She also realises that there's consolation in expressing your unfulfilled dreams. And that it's never to late to find new ones, or to hope they come true. But it's the film's darker insights about self-absorption that linger.

themes, language

16.Jul.25

Fascinating ripples swell up between characters who become remarkably specific through both writing and acting. Hovig plays the straight-talking Marianne as thoughtful and open to life, even as Jacobsen's cool-dude Tor sees her as lacking empathy. Their conversations are frank but soft-spoken, which helps make Tor's beautifully understated journey the most engaging and complex one here. Around them, Engebrigtsen's mercurial Heidi sees things through a specific filter, Holm gives Bjorn a compelling fragility, and Gullestad's Ole is witty and smart.

It's rare to see a film in which characters so astutely discuss such complex opinions about romance. Each of these people is trying to do the best they can, so they are often taken aback by how others approach their love lives. As the carpenter observes, there's often no connection between expectations and the life you get. And the film's central point is that perhaps we need to be more open to listening to and learning from each other.

themes, language, sexuality

23.Jul.25