A Man Called Ove (2016) Music Box/Comedy-Drama RT: 116 minutes Rated PG-13 (thematic content, some disturbing images, language) Director: Hannes Holm Screenplay: Hannes Holm Music: Gaute Storaas Cinematography: Goran Hallberg Release date: October 7, 2016 (Philadelphia, PA) Cast: Rolf Lassgard, Bahar Pars, Filip Berg, Ida Engvoll, Tobias Almborg, Klas Wiljergard, Chatarina Larsson, Borje Lundberg, Stefan Godicke, Johan Widerberg, Anna-Lena Bergelin, Nelly Jamarani, Zozan Akgun, Viktor Baagoe, Simon Edenroth, Poyan Karimi, Maja Rung, Simeon Da Costa, Jessica Olsson, Fredrik Evers, Ola Heden. Spoken in Swedish w/English subtitles
Rating: *** ½
Ah, the power of love! An emotion so strong it can bring even the most miserable of bastards back from the brink of the abyss. Meet Ove (Lassgard, After the Wedding), a 59YO widower and protagonist of A Man Called Ove, a Swedish-made dramedy about the redemptive power of neighborly love. Based on the 2012 book by Fredrik Backman, it’s also Sweden’s official submission for this year’s Best Foreign Film Academy Award. I think it’s a shoo-in for at least a nomination.
Ove’s only joy in life derives from telling others how stupid they are. Each day, he polices the grounds around the idyllic gated cul-de-sac where he lives while grumbling about his neighbors littering, leaving their bicycles out, not locking the gate behind them and driving where they shouldn’t be. Ove is a very unhappy man who visits his wife’s grave daily. He wants to join her in the hereafter ASAP, sooner being better than later. One day, he puts on his best suit and sets about trying to hang himself with blue nylon rope. That’s when love literally comes crashing into life and changes it for better.
New neighbors move in across the street. They are Parvaneh (Pars), the very pregnant Iranian wife of Patrick (Almborg) and their two young daughters. While trying to back the moving trailer into their driveway, they destroy Ove’s mailbox. Annoyed, he runs outside where his impatience compels him to take the wheel and do it himself. Friendships start in many different ways; this isn’t the craziest first meet I’ve heard about.
At first, he wants nothing to do with them. He wants to be left alone to kill himself. It’s during these attempts that we learn his backstory. Ove grew up in a loveless household, raised by his cold father after the death of his mother. After Dad dies in a work accident, he’s forced out of his home by “white shirts” (nameless government bureaucrats) who want the land. He meets his future wife Sonja (Engvoll) while riding the train. They remained steadfast in their union even after facing the greatest tragedy a couple can face.
Fate has different plans for Ove as something always interrupts his suicide attempts. Eventually, Ove starts letting his guard down and warming up to Parvaneh and her family. He starts getting along with his neighbors too. He even helps the wife (Larsson) of his former best friend Rune (Lundberg) when “white shirts” try and force her near-comatose husband (a stroke victim) into a government-funded nursing facility. Who knew that beneath his curmudgeonly façade beat the heart of a mensch? Only everybody that saw As Good as It Gets.
Not so strangely, A Man Called Ove is a lot like the 1997 movie starring Jack Nicholson as a miserable bastard made tolerable by the redemptive power of love. But whereas Melvin Udall’s misanthropy was exasperated by his OCD, Ove just misses his wife terribly. She’s the only person who ever showed him love. When she died (six months earlier), he closed himself off completely. Then Parvaneh showed up. In the role of Ove, Lassgard does a tremendous job. I know it’s a long shot, but I’d like to see him nominated for Best Actor. It wouldn’t be the first time the Academy recognized the star of a foreign film. Roberto Benigni took home the Oscar for his performance in the Italian-made Life Is Beautiful.
A Man Called Ove has its fair share of funny moments, but it’s also quite moving. I won’t divulge details, but you’ll likely shed a tear or two (or many) by the time the end credits roll. Ultimately, it’s a sweet film about love transforming an unhappy, suicidal man into somebody capable of accepting and reciprocating feelings. I know, it sounds sappy, but it’s really not. It never gets maudlin nor does it ever feel insincere. It earns both its laughs and tears. It’s well acted, written and directed by Hannes Holm (Adam & Eva, The Reunion). It’s definitely worth seeking out.
