Ove, a perfectionist old man unable to move past the loss of his beloved wife Sonja,turns suicidal when he loses the job he loved for its deep connect with over 40 years of his life time! When he gets new neighbors – a family from the Middle East, fate unexpectedly turns over a new chapter as they keep running into him and his life takes a different course!
Language:
Swedish
Running Time:
116 min
Rating:
PG-13 (MPAA)
Release date:
26 April 2016
Directed by:
Hannes Holm
Produced by:
Annica Bellander
Nicklas Wikström Nicastro
Written by:
Hannes Holm
Adapted from Novel by Fredrik Backman
Starring:
Rolf Lassgård
Bahar Pars
Filip Berg
Johan Widerberg
Chatarina Larsson
Ida Engvoll
Music by:
Gaute Storaas
Shot by:
Göran Hallberg
Editing by:
Fredrik Morheden
Distributed by:
Nordisk Film

What’s Hot

  • Rolf Lassgård playing the elderly Ove could not have been any better since he plays a character who is almost same age as his own age. With the hairstyle and make-up completing the appearance of an old-school man, his mannerisms are quite spontaneous and enjoyably complement the character.
  • The way the story unfolds to reveal the cause of Ove’s grumpy nature is simply a well-structured screenplay that intelligently intersperses flashes of his past with the present day where a new phase of his life unveils itself. The key here is the crisp detailing provided to each of the incidents from his past.
  • Ove’s interactions with his neighbor, the friendly immigrant Parvaneh, played by Bahar Pars are quite delightful to watch for the witty dialogues and the pretty little situations they find themselves in. As their bond blossoms with time, the movie has already cast a spell on the audience to keep them emotionally bound to Ove and Parvaneh.
  • The cinematography from Göran Hallberg, paints a serene picture of a quiet neighborhood to good effect. The frames are unconventional at many places, but still very effective. The collaborative effort with the VFX crew deserves special mention for the accident scenes featured in the movie.

What’s Not

  • The depiction of the morbid moments in the life of Ove are a touch too graphic which seemingly evoke more of shock at the hard way it was presented rather than the actual event which was intended to garner sympathy for Ove’s suffering.

Badges

Acting
Screenplay
Cinematography

Verdict

Verdict Stamp

Starting of as a humor sprinkled narration of a sullen old man coping with the recent loss of his wife, “A Man Called Ove” grows on the audience with each passing minute. By virtue of diligent acting and an absorbing screenplay, its ends up casting a mesmerizing spell of emotion!