The Worst Person in the World
Starring Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Herbert Nordrum, Hans Olav Brenner
Directed by Joachim Trier
Julie (Renate Reinsve) is a single twenty-something-nearing-thirty girl living in Oslo, Norway, and she can't seem to get her life together. In college she moves from one man to another, dating everyone from models to her professors as she changes her major from medicine to psychology and eventually photography. She wistfully moves from one desire to another which eventually lands her in the arms of much older Aksel (Anders Danielsen Lie), a successful politically incorrect cartoonist. As their relationship blossoms and Julie nears the big 3-0, she's frightened when Aksel starts talking about having children, as she remembers how her lineage had all had successful endeavors in their years while she seemingly has accomplished nothing.
After leaving a party honoring Aksel's achievements, she crashes another party and meets Eivind (Herbert Nordrum), a man who's also in a relationship, but the two begin sparking chemistry together and yet choose not to "cheat" in the traditional sense, parting ways in the morning without doing anything "illicit." Yet as the days go by, Julie thinks more about Eivind and doubts her relationship with Aksel, as she sees more of her free-spirited nature in Eivind. Choosing to leave, she begins a relationship with Eivind, and it seems that the two are actually a natural pairing - until more of life's troubles strike Julie, resulting in a mid-life crisis where she doubts her previous decisions and wonders again what path she needs to take.
"The Worst Person in the World" fully epitomizes what it means to be someone in their 20s/30s in today's world. The pressures of success, family, wealth, and legacy weighs heavy on their minds during these formative years, and everyone else's expectations on you forces you to sometimes make decisions you don't technically want (or like) to make, solely based on their preconceived notions of what you're supposed to be. In a way, this film introduces us to three candidates who could be "the worst person in the world," yet it also inadvertently (or possibly...advertently...) provides a fourth candidate, and that one is most likely the most plausible winner of the title.
The first is the most obvious candidate, Julie herself. Julie had a rough childhood, as her father left the family and he's been estranged since, refusing to appear at her thirtieth birthday party by providing a fake reason. As she celebrates with her boyfriend, mother, and grandmother, she reminisces about the previous women of her genealogy, and what each one had accomplished by the time they turned thirty (in a humorous moment - many in the film - she mentions one of her great-great grandmothers did nothing at thirty because no one lived that long back then). It seems that most of the women in her life had children and successful careers, and Julie is still childless and wandering through life wondering what she really wants to do. She sees her boyfriend - a much older man - as a success: he has a thriving cartoon business who's character is about to be made into a big-screen movie, and he's revered and respected by those around him. Meanwhile, she tries her hand at writing, with modest success. With Aksel wanting children himself, she feels like she's about to drown in a world that she doesn't want to live in, which is why she finds sparks with the equally free-spirited Eivind, and chooses to leave Aksel for him after a whimsical dream of her reuniting with Eivind (which is one of the film's most stunning cinematic achievements). Yet she doesn't just up and leave Aksel, but she showcases her emotions in not wanting to leave, but also wanting to leave at the same time, feeling like a spectator in her own life, yet still having strong feelings for Aksel. She doesn't want to hurt him for the sake of hurting him, but needs to chase after the next bright shining thing she sees.
Renate Reinsve truly shines as Julie, a woman who is very layered and intelligent despite making sometimes off-the-cuff decisions. She's the central focus of the film, and director (and co-writer) Joachim Trier allows Reinsve to fully immerse herself in the character in the most subtle ways. Be it a smile in the midst of tears, or a forlorn look during what's supposed to be a happy moment, Reinsve injects this unique feel for Julie that transcends simplicity. The choices she makes isn't to hurt others, but to hopefully help herself, and she realizes that she sometimes leaves others in the rearview in a worse place than before, but she needs to look out for herself. Is that selfish? Some say yes, some say no, and that's why she's a candidate for the "worst person in the world," but doesn't really fit the mold.
Then there's Aksel, Julie's older boyfriend who has an extremely tough outer shell and who relies on the past to dictate his worldview. He's not "woke" by any standard, and adheres to the old ways of the world: he mansplains, he gets himself into awkward situations, and yet he also professes a deep abiding love for Julie. When he's interviewed about his crass politically incorrect cartoons, he's headstrong in his defense which results in cringe-worthy moments that he seems totally naive to, as the female co-hosts bash him for being out of touch with reality. He's truly a relic of a foregone era, but he also exudes emotions that are intensely bottled up inside him because, again, he adheres to the olden ways where men are supposed to be strong and show no weakness.
Anders Danielsen Lie plays Aksel with this intensity, but also shows subtle moments that come across as wholly emotional. His tete-a-tete with Julie are truly battles of the softest caliber, as both allow their guards to drop as they earnestly express their deepest emotions, fears, and feelings toward one another, and these moments are the strongest in the film. Despite breaking up, they remain each others' true love, even as time passes and events swing back in their direction in the most heartbreaking ways. Anders can show emotion with his eyes, which beguile his fervent vocal nature - you can see he wants to break down and cry through his eyes, but he remains steadfast. He also delivers the most shattering moments in the movie when he talks about how at some point all we have left is to look back at who we were, to the artifacts of youth - and that's downright soul-crushing. While he doesn't have a firm grasp on the politically correct nature of this new world, he still exhibits real, raw human emotions that also doesn't make him the "worst person in the world."
The third actor in this triangle is Herbert Nordrum's Eivind, who is easily the most innocent of all of them. Yes, he flirts with Julie at the party, but doesn't allow things to evolve into "cheating" as the world thinks it is, but you can tell that there's a deep emotional connection between the two of them - while they didn't physically cheat, they did emotionally cheat. Yet even this cheating wasn't in malice, as both characters were going through their own troubles, doubts, and concerns about their lives. Eivind's own relationship is questionable, as his girlfriend is more interested in being a social media yoga influencer than a relationship, and he doesn't go out with Julie until they both break off their relationships. Nordrum gives a great performance as well, being the more aloof and goofy character in Julie's world and who by no means proves to be "the worst person in the world," even though he thinks he is.
No, the real "worst person in the world" is the hidden character in the movie: society. Society demands that we have our stuff together by the time we turn thirty. We need to have our ducks lined in a perfect row, have the perfect job, the perfect spouse, the perfect kids, the perfect home, and the perfect life. Anything outside of that perfection is seen with guile and mockery. We aren't supposed to still be searching for our meaning in our thirties (or forties in my case), but we're supposed to be fully functioning clogs in society, keeping the world turning in the old way while pandering to the new ideas but not fully encompassing ourselves in it. "The Worst Person in the World" is a straight-up attack on such antiquated ideals, allowing us to really find out who we are in our own timeline, and not the timeline set by the society that demands conformity in the midst of individuality.
By celebrating the individual as she explores the meaning of her own existence, "The Worst Person in the World" serves as a perfect rom-com for those who don't like rom-coms, offering a unique perspective about life, love, and everything that falls in-between.
The Score: A+
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