Ron’s Review

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I really wanted to like this film. Considering the nominations it’s received at the Oscars, I expected to be absolutely floored and lost in my feelings.

But I found this film to be disjointed. Scenes were thrown in to answer questions the audience had but they weren’t used to progress the story or to help the characters understand themselves or each other. There were far too many scenes like that. And while it’s great to not have to wonder, it’s strange to give the audience information while denying the characters those nuggets of history.

I also found the editing choppy. There were scenes where I felt like I was getting settled in and where I thought the director would just let us watch the actors interact with each other naturally. But every time, there would be a harsh cut and a change of angle that reminded us we were watching a film. It was so distracting, especially when the change in angle accompanied a sudden change in the character’s expression or position. Editing that calls attention to itself and the filmmaking process is not good editing, in my book.

The entire cast has been nominated for acting Oscars. I’m genuinely curious what the Academy saw in Elle Fanning’s performance because I found it uninspired. There was one scene where she actually emoted but for the most part she was lacklustre and putting in the bare minimum. Compared to her costars, she was poor.

This is the Renate Reinsve and Stellan Skarsgard show. They’re both good and they have a lot to do. They have the largest roles and have the most characters to interact with. They put in good performances but I was annoyingly always aware of them being actors. Particularly Skarsgard, who just seemed like a drunker version of himself. I had to remind myself that I was watching Gustav, not Stellan. Am I being too harsh?

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas is the most natural of the bunch. She comes across as a very real person. But I felt like she was initially too wooden and by the end, too emotional. I don’t blame the actor for this; I think she should have been given better direction. She and Reinsve also had good sisterly chemistry which made that bond work in the film.

Reinsve gets to emote a great deal. She’s particularly expressive when her character Nora is angry or trying to hide how upset she is. But the opening scene with Nora is so stupid. It just makes no sense. And it was so long and overdrawn. I couldn’t stand it. That did such a huge disservice to the character and the actor because Reinsve is so much better when she just gets to play Nora as a person. There was also no follow through on that scene. We never see Nora act that way again.

And that was my biggest struggle with this film. Why didn’t we get follow through on so many character moments? It feels like slices of life that the director needed to add in to the film to show the characters’ depths, but it felt more like moments that were shoehorned in without preamble and follow through.

At its heart, this film is a story about a family torn apart by generations of hidden sorrow. It’s about the love between parents and children, even if that love doesn’t always manifest the way we expect or want it to. But my question is: aren’t there supposed to be consequences to anger and abandonment? Does a family always need to forgive and move on? This film answers the question in its own way but I don’t feel like the journey to that answer was as earned as the film thinks it is.

I liked what the film was trying to say but I didn’t like how it said it.

Mon’s Review

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I didn’t know what to expect from this film as I’ve not watched Trier’s previous work. I knew this would be about the entertainment industry, but I didn’t expect such a layered tale of family dynamics, love, anger, and, of course, creativity.

This was an unpredictable watch. We didn’t get the cliches I figured would appear. But the bar is low, so that’s not a huge surprise. Instead, we get Nora — struggling with anxiety and abandonment issues. We also have her father Gustav, who made a decision that’s come back to haunt him. Their interactions, plus those with other daughter Agnes, were painfully real. It was brilliant.

I loved how the fictional scenes were interwoven through the narrative. Sometimes they were juxtaposed with the real scenes to elaborate on the actions and reactions. Other times, they replaced real reactions. Why, we’re left to wonder.

The films also includes flashbacks to explain who the family is. It’s not linear, so we’re left to put the pieces together. I enjoyed learning more about this family. The goods, and the bads.

I thought this film was fantastic. I’ll admit that there were a few plodding scenes, but you can power through it. I’ll also add that while I found the editing choices between scenes interesting, the editing between takes was not good. You could see continuity errors in the actors’ positions and expressions. It completely ruined the moment of the scene. I’m not sure why we didn’t just have much longer takes — the cuts just took one out of the scene.

The performances were fantastic. Understated and natural. The only weak link was Elle Fanning. Bar one scene, I found her really flat. She constantly took me out of the film. I’m surprised she’s got so many nominations. Is it for that one scene? The rest of the cast were such naturals throughout.

Despite my reservations, I am stunned by this film. I worry that people will take the wrong message from the ending. But, families are complicated, and this film does a beautiful job of showing us that.