Elling
Release Date:
May 29, 2002
Limited release
This film from Norway was one of the nominees for Best Foreign-Language Film at the 2002 Academy Awards, which was won by No Man's Land. It is finally getting a theatrical release here in the United States. The film is apparently one of the most popular films ever in Norway.
The movie will likely be compared to either Dumb and Dumber or Forrest Gump in terms of storyline and characters. The movie stars Per Christian Ellefsen as Elling, a middle-aged man who has always lived with his mother. However, when she dies, he can't handle it and is put into an institution. His roommate there is Kjell Bjarne (Sven Nordin), a forty-something, sex-obsessed virgin.
The two are released from their confines and are sent out into the world. We follow their lives in their new apartment in Oslo. Kjell takes a liking to an upstairs neighbor, while Elling is petrified that he will have another nervous breakdown and be sent back into the institution. He eventually develops a new talent for writing poetry.
The reviews of this film have been mostly positive, but I wonder how much of this is influenced by the Academy Award nomination, because I have seen some negative opinions. If you get a chance to see this movie in your local independent film venue, it might be worth a look. (Marty Doskins/BOP)
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