49/43
Armand, a 6-year-old boy, is accused of crossing boundaries with his best friend in elementary school. Norway’s official submission for the “Best International Feature Film” category at the 97th Academy Awards in 2025. From the grandson of Ingmar German and Liv Ullman, Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel has a debut that shows good potential, but despite the ambitious concept and strong moments, it fails to fully sustain its narrative and goes through a limbo. The psychological drama and the themes explored of the school system and the battle of wits between people are a good concept, especially without knowing much about the European perspective. With good camerawork and sound design, it helps to create the claustrophobic setting and tensions. The performances of the cast, especially Renate Reinsve, were great and felt realistic. Unfortunately, what makes the film fall flat is the way the narrative is written and how uneven it feels. Many of the writing components have good concepts, but the surrealist approach doesn’t quite work, which ends up feeling repetitive and confusing as it goes on. Making things a bit difficult to really understand or connect with the characters or find them believable at times. Stories like these are films that I enjoy, but I can’t really engage with them because of the confusing writing and repetitive nature. Tøndel’s direction is good, but at times, the direction felt a bit off and lost. Being dialogue heavy, the dialogue is a mix of good and some not so good. At its core, Tøndel has a lot of talent, as this film shows his talents and potential to be a good filmmaker in the future. But there is still a lot of work to be done.