It’s here, my second favourite film festival (British is my first), the Scandinavian Film Festival. This year the Festival has a new naming rights partner, Carlsberg. So here are my tips for this year, starting with grab yourself a Carlsberg beer (obviously) and download the program.
Showcasing the best new cinema from the Nordic region, I like the look of these films:
The Tuesday Club
Karin (Marie Richardson, Daybreak) and Sten (Björn Kjellman) are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary with friends when when Karin discovers a secret Sten has been hiding. Having spent her life taking care of her family, the sudden change it brings forces Karin to re-evaluate her life. Her old school friend Monika persuades her and their mutual friend Pia to join a cooking class led by renowned chef Henrik (Peter Stormare, Fargo). So begins the Tuesday Club, and in the hot kitchen with exotic spices, amazing food, old and new friends, more than one of Karin’s long-lost passions are reborn. Amongst the hissing frying pans and steaming scents, Karin soon discovers that it is never too late to dare to follow her dreams. I think I’ve seen this film before, if so it’s a sweet romantic comedy with some great food thrown in. What’s not to like about that?
Nothing to Laugh About
This film tells the story of a successful stand-up comedian whose entire life changes in a single day. He sets out on a heart-warming journey to rediscover himself and his laughter in this charming dramatic comedy starring Norwegian comedian Odd-Magnus Williamson. The trailer had me in tears. It looks like a life affirming film, but I think I’ll take my sunglasses to wear on the way out just in case.
Nordic By Nature
This culinary documentary follows the endearing yet brutal everyday life of the Faroe Islands and its culinary pearl, two-star Michelin restaurant KOKS. The Faroe Islands are an ancient microcosmos of exciting products, Nordic history, a thriving seafood industry, stunning landscapes and eccentric personalities. Prior to COVID-19, people took immense detours to dine at KOKS, an eatery serving food sourced from just 500 square miles of produce, in a rugged terrain and subpolar climate, with average temperatures close to freezing throughout the year, everlasting light in summer and scorching darkness through winter. Filmed over an 18-month period, the film dives into the poetic mind of young Faroese chef Poul Andrias Ziska, exploring the traditions, history and distinctive ancient practices that lie beneath the world’s most remote fine dining experience. Five years after his successful Michelin Stars: Tales from the Kitchen, director Rasmus Dinesen returns with the story of young, down-to-earth chef Ziska and his team, attempting to combine local cooking traditions with modern cuisine amid the beauty and wilderness of the Faroe Islands. Content Warning: Contains scenes of animal death.
Margrete (Queen of the North)
This film is dubbed an epic co-production between Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Czech Republic and Poland. It’s a lavish historical drama set in 1402 from acclaimed director Charlotte Sieling, it explores the legacy and dilemmas faced by Denmark’s Queen Margrete, a visionary ruler who brokered the historic Kalmar Union, uniting Sweden, Norway and Denmark. This is the opening night movie.
The Emigrants
Based on Vilhelm Moberg’s beloved story, it follows the emigration of a family from Sweden to the United States in the mid 1800s and stars Lisa Carlehed and Gustav Skarsgård.
A Matter Of Trust
On a perfectly ordinary late-summer day, the lives of five unrelated people are turned upside down. A husband, a doctor, a wife, a student and a young daughter are unsuspectingly put on a collision course with each of their fateful crossroads. In the search for love, identity and moral gauge, they all risk the most precious aspect of life – trust. But trust is vulnerable and the consequences will be irreversible, forbidden and embarrassingly amusing. A moving, unpredictable and deeply felt collection of powerful narratives. A tender and true portrait of trust in modern relationships.
So Damn Easy Going
On the cusp of adulthood, 18-year-old Joanna’s mind is in constant sensory overload, like a theme park in peak season. Joanna suffers from ADHD and needs medication to keep her buzzy brain in order. Her depressed father hides behind drawn curtains and can’t manage buying food, paying the bills or supporting Joanna. With him out of work, Joanna must be creative in her hunt for money, resorting to selling whatever she can at her high school to pay for her medication. Amidst the chaos, she meets the charming and confident Audrey and develops a close bond with her classmate, so she now has both a bursting mind and an exploding heart. In his debut feature film, director and co-writer Christoffer Sandler uses novel visual and aural effects to depict the uncontrollable cacophony of lights and sounds that many people with ADHD endure every day. The film is a funny, sweet coming-of-age drama about love and daring to be yourself.
Quake
Based on a best-selling Icelandic novel, the film stars Anita Briem as a single mother who is fighting to keep her young son while trying to piece together her life after losing her memory. Selected for many European film festivals including the 2022 Göteborg Film Festival is the absorbing mystery thriller from Iceland
The Festival returns to Palace and Luna Palace Cinemas running from July 20 to Aug 10. For more information go to Carlsberg Scandinavian Film Festival
Luna Cinemas offers multi passes
5 Film Multipass – General Admission $80 ($16 per ticket)
10 Film Multipass – General Admission $150 ($15 per ticket)
5 Film Multipass – Privilege Card Members $70 ($14 per ticket)
10 Film Multipass – Privilege Card Members $130 ($13 per ticket)
and finally the biggest tip … get your tickets early as the best movies sell out fast.
