Uno

OK, this movie has received a lot of harsh comments, even though it is one of the best Norwegian films ever made.

Aksel Hennie has written the screenplay himself, he started several years before his dream of the film became realized. The movie is based on a good story, set in Downtown-Oslo. The characters are involved in the shady side of the society, and this gives the film a good plot.

As a first in Norwegian film history, a guy with Downs-syndrome plays Aksels brother, who has downs-syndrome. According to Aksel, this gave the character more credibility, and the guy does a really good job.

The screenplay, acting and music in this film is top notch, a film worth seeing!

This about gang criminality, loyalty to the gang and cowardliness was a very pleasant surprise. I find it to be a realistic picture of how these things operate with well developed characters, good script, realistic atmosphere with sometimes a very strong feeling of anxiety and the actors are all fit their role very good including the mother of David and Kjetil who I find very understanding of the situation and a strong mother. Best is Bjørn Floberg as Jarle though. He is quite scary actually.

Aksel Hennie put a lot of work into the script and you can tell. It moves very quickly with no dead points. The relations are thought out. Camera-work is good too, Oslo center-east is put forth as it feels, but not too easily is transmitted through pictures. Recommended together with 'Hawaii, Oslo' in which Hennie plays a similar role in the neighbourhood of this movie and 'Schpaaa' also about Oslo underworld and its affiliation with youths. Both are by Erik Poppe. Not meant to take away the spotlight from 'Uno' though.

I don't know where to start. This film is excellent on many levels. All of the characters are believable and the storyline is quite realistic. The acting is superb. The soundtrack is great. The camera work is excellent. The movie is packed with RAW emotion.

David represents anyone who is alone in this world, or at least feels alone. His life was in a rut. His father is dying, his mom is having a nervous breakdown, and his brother has down syndrome. Aside from that he has no real friends he can depend on. David is really alone mentally and physically. Even though the film is very downbeat and sad, I feel that the ending shows how a real man must face the world. We must face it by ourselves.

I truly enjoyed the film and I think anyone with an open mind will enjoy this emotional piece of art.

I noticed a comment here, saying that Norway is such a peaceful country, and that this movie is unrealistic, wannabe etc.

The environment that sets the basis for this movie is not apparent for "regular" citizens of Oslo, neither is it apparent for everyday people.

This movie is great, and we all know that this movie is realistic, whether you want to or not. Some of the actors are great, Bjørn Floberg in particular. He is among the finest actors in Norway, and i wish he starred in more films like this. This is not a feel-good film at all, and it will probably leave you with a few questions, but it is definitely worth seeing.

Two thumbs up for Uno

I watched the film during the Istanbul Film Festival (2-17 April 2005) between two low-tempered films both from Europe, and Uno just suited very well between those two slow ones. The first thing about "Uno" is its tempo. It starts in a smooth mode and goes on like this through the whole film. Even in the beginning, when the main characters were introduced, the movie starts to "move". Both the visual technique Hennie used and the elements of the story serve the the tempo of the film very well. The movie has waves in itself but it never breaks at any point. The second important thing i guess is the atmosphere of the movie. Every place in the movie was well-chosen and well-prepared. The houses, the room of David, the gym... The atmosphere created by Hennie was dark but hopeful. And i liked it. And Tom Mcrae's songs adds a lot to the movie. After all, nice movie even for non-Norwegians!! 8/10.