A Man Called Ove
Stepping from the pages of Fredrik Backman’s international best-selling novel, Ove is the quintessential angry old man next door. An isolated retiree with strict principles and a short fuse, who spends his days enforcing block association rules that only he cares about, and visiting his wife’s grave, Ove has given up on life. Enter a boisterous young family next door who accidentally flattens Ove’s mailbox while moving in and earning his special brand of ire. Yet from this inauspicious beginning an unlikely friendship forms and we come to understand Ove’s past happiness and heartbreaks. What emerges is a heartwarming tale of unreliable first impressions and the gentle reminder that life is sweeter when it's shared.
One of Sweden's biggest locally-produced box office hits ever, director Hannes Holm finds the beating heart of his source material and Swedish star Rolf Lassgård, whose performance won him the Best Actor award at the 2016 Seattle Int’l Film Festival, affectingly embodies the lovable curmudgeon Ove.
Director:
Hannes Holm
Cast:
Rolf Lassgård, Bahar Pars, Zozan Akgün
Screenplay:
Fredrik Backman (novel), Hannes Holm
Screening Date:
Sep 24, 2016
Studio:
Music Box Films
Running Time:
116 min
| Excellent | Very Good | Good | Fair | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50.0% | 38.6% | 11.4% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
“A moving and very funny film. Thank you!”
“Nicely done, sentimental life story. Book on which it is based on is supposed to be very funny.”
“Wonderful.”
“Such a feel-good touching movie!”
“Loved the movie.”
“A wonderful portrayal of a life – like most lives I guess – filled with the joys and sorrows that come with life and love. Ove’s obsession with trying to make his apartment complex perfect is the metaphor for you can copntrol what happens.”
“Great story, wonderfully told and acted. Terrific line about surviving Iraq, learning a language, bearing two children with a third on the way, now just learn how to drive a car!”
“A sensitive subject presented with humor. Enjoyable and well done.”
“A 10 tissue film! A sweet film, wonderful casting; makes me want to read the book, which it is sitting on a pile of ‘to read’ at home. Great old cars! Scenes of trying to kill himself remind me of HAROLD AND MAUDE. Ove’s back story from childhood was heart-breaking losing his parents, his house and it was surprising that he didn’t fight back when they set his house on fire. Extraordinary that he continues to help others. White Shirts represent the officious greedy people who want to displace people from their lives.”
“Quirky and funny.”
“Wonderful message – it is in reaching out to people and embracing their differences, from the Iraq woman to the gay restaurant worker, that gives life joy, not in building a wall between yourself and others. And yes, I’m talking to you Mr. Trump!”
“Nice sappy film. Very enjoyable.”
“Another fine Swedish film, human in scale, sensitive in its characters, in theme. And aside from the cinematic pleasure, how nice to see a film with lovely immigrants who are fully welcome in their new community.”
“Cynical humor at its finest!”
“Tear jerker. Great!”
“Loved the fact that his wife was a teacher of the handicapped. I wish it was that easy to convert a room of disgruntled teenages into poetry readers, but you’ve got to try.”
“Well done. Very touching.”
“Heartfelt and charming. I loved the way the story unfolded (like a John Sayles movie). Like a puzzle box opening to reveal treasures at every step. There were hints all along about things to come. The casting was great! Everyone’s performance was terrific. Loved the script. Wonderful character studies. Could have been sappy and it wasn’t. It was emotionally truthful and real. Again the use of humor balanced the bathos and the pathos. Thank you for getting this film for us. Great exploration of how differently people deal with adversity as per their personalities. Psychologically Ove has to overcome resisting to attachment starting from his mother’s loss.”
“I totally loved this film and all the themes messaging lessons. It’s so movingly conveyed. ‘This is the life’- Ove’s last words in the film is it! Thanks John and the team that made it.”
“A moving story of loss and redemption. The slow unfolding of the story was effective. The music was a bit much! The actor who played Ove was magnificent.”
If you'd like to know more about the film...
If you want to learn more about the highly acclaimed and talented author of the book, click on the following link.
http://lauriegrassi.com/wits-end/book-fredrik-backman-interview-man-call...
If you want to learn about how director Hannes Holm felt about making the film? Click on the link below to find out.
https://www.kcet.org/kcet-cinema-series/director-hannes-holm-on-adapting...
To learn about the films fight for an Oscar nomination, click on the link below.
http://cineuropa.org/nw.aspx?t=newsdetail&l=en&did=314843
Want to know what Variety said about the movie? Click on the link below.
http://variety.com/2016/film/festivals/a-man-called-ove-review-1201722435/
