A Man Called Ove

While planning my weekly trip to the theater, a title stuck out."A Man Called Ove" was playing in my hometown! I recognized the name from the 89th Academy Awards and reserved my seat. Even if you don’t buy into the Oscars, it’s very much worth checking out.

59-year-old widower Ove (Rolf Lassgård) might be described as a bully. He’s rough around the edges and will stick you for any infraction of the neighborhood’s rules. As his neighbors' lives and problems constantly interrupt his suicide attempts, he begins to find a new purpose.

This is not a big picture. There are no shocking revelations about spies or special effects besides the nomination-worthy makeup used to age/de-age the characters. When you hear the premise, it might sound cheesy, even dull. A brief synopsis doesn’t convey the enjoyment you'll have watching it. Seeing this film is like walking up to that old guy that’s lived next to you for five years and discovering a new friend.

Most stories get less interesting the further they go on. They’ve figured out how to beat the monster, the safe has finally been cracked and it’s time for the obligatory incident to muddle things up, the clues have all been laid out and you can smell the finale coming. Here, it's the opposite. The more you learn about the grouchy stickler for rules that is Ove, the more fascinated you'll be. As in real life, where you don’t find out everything there is to know all at once, or in chronological order. You are slowly given the pieces that come together to form this richly textured life. You come to like Ove not in spite of his eccentricities, but because of them. The same applies to all of the side characters. You feel like you’re part of the neighborhood and you can’t wait to organize a potluck so you can get together with all of them at once. I'd love to sit down with strong-willed Parvaneh (Bahar Pars), the neighbor with a penchant for showing up at the wrong time, or Ove's deceased wife Sonja (Ida Engvoll) and strike up a conversation to find out more about them.

Even if you’re stuck reading the English subtitles to understand what’s happening, you’ll still be struck by how good the performances are. It’s uncanny what a simple look, intonations or expressions can say about a character, even when you don’t understand what they’re saying. The film’s got such a genuine quality about it that you won’t even mind the more movie-like turns it takes during the conclusion. There are plenty of laughs, earnest moments and maybe even tears to be found in “A Man Called Ove”. (Original Swedish version with English Subtitles on the big screen, February 28, 2017)