Flash Movie Review: A Man Called Ove
I was a witness to it though I did not know I was watching something significant taking place. Visiting a friend at her house, we were sitting and talking while her kids were playing on the floor. I was not aware something was brewing but her daughter got upset over her sibling grabbing a toy from out of her hands. The little girl slapped her brother and he began to cry. My friend verbally disciplined them, saying something I thought most parents would say to an unruly child; I did not pay much mind to it. But right after my friend said it she stopped cold, turned to me and said, “Oh no, I just turned into my mother!” My puzzled look was her cue to tell me what she just told her kids was the same line her mother used to say to her when she was young. Now I understood; she reached that point in time, whether she wanted to believe it or not, when she discovered she was turning into her mother. Haven’t many of us gone through the same thing? It does not have to be a verbal thing; it could be some particular action that you find yourself doing that one of your parents used to do. WHAT I find just as impactful if not more is the time when you first objectively see yourself in someone else. For me it happened at a birthday party for a friend. There was a guy there who must have been angry about something. We were sitting around playing a game and this person would get upset if someone on his team did not succeed in the task. His competiveness was not relatable to me but his expressed anger is what connected to me. I have to tell you it startled me when I realized I probably make the people in my life just as uncomfortable with the anger I carried inside of me. This happened years ago but wouldn’t you know it, there was something about the main character in this comedic drama that struck a chord in me. THOUGH no longer president of the association Ove, played by Rolf Lassgard (Under the Sun, The Hunters), made his daily rounds to make sure everything was in order. Trouble was all he saw when his new neighbor Parvaneh, played by Bahar Pars (When Darkness Falls, Dreams), and her family drove into his mailbox. This film festival winner is Sweden’s entry into the Best Foreign Film category at the 2017 Academy Awards. It totally deserves to be there because I thought the story and the acting were excellent. With Filip Berg (Eternal Summer, Deano and Nige’s Best Last Day Ever) as Ove som ung and Sofie Gallerspang (Monica Z, Innocent Mara-TV Movie) as Brud; I felt the writers did a beautiful job of intertwining the 2 story lines of past and present. The directing was a little heavy where one would almost feel they were being manipulated but Rolf was outstanding enough to make everything real in this picture. This was a well done picture now please excuse me as I go take a good look at myself in the mirror. Swedish and Persian was spoken with English subtitles.
3 ½ stars
Posted on November 4, 2016, in Foreign and tagged 3 1/2 stars, anger, bahar pars, comedy, depression, drama, filip berg, film festival winner, foreign, oscar nominee, persian, rolf lassgard, sweden. Bookmark the permalink. 16 Comments.
Loved the book…loved the movie…I thought they did a beautiful job of translating book to screen. I went with a Swedish friends and loved hearing background details!
That is awesome to hear Diane; thank you for telling me and that the movie translated well from the book.
This film is based on one of the best Swedish novels for the last couple of years
I am amazed at all the positive news about the novel; thank you for telling me.
Thank you, this is definitely something to look for , both a book and a movie.
I cannot get over all the positive buzz I heard in my classes when I told them the review of this film. Please let me know what you thought of the film after seeing it. Thank you.
I certainly will. What do you teach?
After my full time job, I teach yoga and cycling classes. I have to do something physical after sitting at the movie theaters all day. lol
True that. I used to go to a yoga class once a week and also do it at home every day, but the class sort of disintegrated, so now I only do it at home. Can’t live without it, though!
So glad to hear. It really is a wonderful experience. Thanks for telling me.
Great movie. Deserves to have much wider distribution.
I absolutely agree with you; it was only at 3 theaters in my neck of the woods. Thank you for the comment.
I loved this book and I really want to see the movie. It played for 3 days here in a small obscure movie theater. I’m just going to order a copy at this point. Thanks for the review!
Hello it is a pleasure meeting you and thank you for stopping by to leave your comments. Please tell me your thoughts on the film after you see it. I was told the movie does a good job of following the book.
How nice that you found a film from Sweden. Rolf is an good actor and has done many good movies.
This was a big surprise because it was only playing in 3 theaters; so glad I chose to travel and see it. Thank you for the comments.