Reviews

"Fjorton suger" was one of the most pleasant movie surprises that I've had in my life. The acting and the dialogue in the movie felt so authentic that it was like watching real life and that someone just happened to catch it on film.

Therefore my expectations for "Du & jag" were pretty high. I was definitely not disappointed, but I wasn't blown away either.

"Du & jag" might in some ways be percepted as a sequel to "Fjorton suger". The people depicted are about ten years older than those in "Fjorton suger", but when it comes to love and close relations they are just as clumsy. The directing is once again very documentary-like, with lots of close-ups and shaky camera, the soundtrack is amazing, and the actors are, although unknown to the general audience, extremely talented.

However, the story isn't as focused as in "Fjorton suger". It spans over several years, and even though the final cut is no more than one and a half hours, some of the scenes feel a bit uninspired and out of place. Another downside (and this is my very own opinion) is that not all of the actors speak Scanian this time.

But all in all, "Du & jag" is well worth seeing, in my opinion far superior to the similar "Farväl Falkenberg".

Krama mig is a little gem that hasn't got the attention it deserves. The movie also fills an important space in the Swedish flora of teenage portraits. There have been many in recent years (Fucking Åmål, Fjorton suger, Hip Hip Hora! and Sandor/Ida) but all of them depict life in your early teens. Krama mig, on the other hand, is less about partying until you puke, and more about relations and the challenges of becoming an adult.

For us who have already been through this phase in life, the story is very identifiable. The dialogue is great in all its simplicity, and Henna Ohranen (Minna) and Erica Koop Nedrell (Simone) are doing two very memorable performances.

Hopefully, the fact that Krama mig was released in January doesn't affect its chances of being recognized at the Guldbagge Awards next year.

If you are familiar with Ulf Malmros' previous works, you know that a stylish movie about music and set in the 80s, is just up his alley. Malmros is without doubt Sweden's best director when it comes to using music to create mood.

For Tjenare Kungen, he has been given an historically big budget to buy tunes for. The result is - of course - as good as anyone could have hoped. With everything from Alphaville to Thåström, Tjenare Kungen swiftly transfers us back to 1984.

The entire movie is in fact an orgy in everything that made the 80s so special (?). A lot of time has been put into little - but oh so important - details like clothes and hair-cuts.

As with Smala Sussie, Ulf Malmros has once again found a bunch of very talented debutants. Josefin Neldén (Abra) and Cecilia Wallin (Millan) are both extremely believable and lovable as the two girls forming a punk band. When you leave the theatre, it is impossible not to have a little crush on Abra.

Tjenare Kungen is not ground-breaking in any way. It is a simple story that follows a formula proved to be good. It is not as heart-warmening as Den bästa sommaren, and the dialogue isn't as quirky and hilarious as in Smala Sussie. However, when you leave the theatre, you do it with a big smile on your lips. Knowing that you have just had one of your best cinematic moments this year.

Teresa Fabik (Hip Hip Hora!) recently complained about how no Swedish filmmakers dared to do something really twisted. I am sure she hasn't seen Smala Sussie.

What we're talking about is basically a Swedish Pulp Fiction, only better. And what it lacks in violence, it makes up in clever dialogue.

Great comedy is a rare talent. Because it isn't what you say, but rather how you say it, that is important. I'm not sure that non-Swedish viewers will be as pleased as I am, because a lot of the subtle humour is lost between the subtitles. I hope, however, that nobody fails to notice the wonderful performance by Björn Starrin (Pölsa). Like a few others of the cast, Björn is not a professional actor. Smala Sussie is in fact his first movie experience ever. Yet he pulls off one of the funniest performances I've seen in a long, long time. Björn very much deserved the Guldbagge-nomination he didn't get.

Pölsa's words of wisdom have in fact become some kind of religion to me. A religion where hon med fönen is the son, Pölsa the father, and Uffe Malmros the holy creative spirit.

Nobody likes a bad movie, but sometimes you come across one that is so extremely bad it actually becomes enjoyable. This is the case with Camp Slaughter.

Director Martin Munthe's idea of paying homage to his favorite slasher films (Friday the 13th) is by making one that is even worse. The so called effects were outdated even twenty years ago, and the story is a joke. However, you may not notice this since you are so busy laughing at the actors. Not only do they read their lines in the worst form of Swenglish, there's also an embarrassing lack of devotion and experience.

You just have to watch this.