Reprise
The Age
Thursday June 19, 2008
Reprise
Disney, 105 min, MA,drama, 20063/5Norwegian director Joachim Trier makes his feature debut with a smart, melancholy, elaborately presented depiction of possibilities and realities, a tale of youthful rivalry, masculinity, creative ambition, romantic obsession and madness. The storytelling is involved and full of hectic flourishes, but the compulsive inventiveness of Trier's style works as a way of conveying the turmoil and uncertainty of the creative and emotional worlds his characters have immersed themselves in.We meet the two young protagonists, friends and literary rivals Erik (Espen Klouman-Hoiner) and Phillip (Anders Danielsen Lie), just as they've finished their first novels and are putting the manuscripts in the post. They are both convinced that they've written masterpieces, and that literary acclaim is soon to follow. One of them finds immediate success, the other does not. One becomes obsessed with an idealised love, the other constantly finds ways to ignore his girlfriend. Their lives continue to be linked, in increasingly tormented ways, in a milieu that starts to seem self-centred and self-defeating. Yet Trier, who also co-wrote the film, retains a certain compassion for his characters.DVD extras include: trailer
© 2008 The Age