EUyeshima

Although there are obvious comparisons with Ingmar Bergman's masterworks, this 2025 Norwegian drama reminded me more of the way Yasujiro Ozu approached storytelling in his films through quiet scenes that insinuate and then emotionally strike in unexpected ways. Director Joachim Trier and screenwriter Eskil Vogt bring a similar dynamic by introducing life's complications into a richly textured story of two sisters, Nora and Agnes, dealing with the return of their estranged father, Gustav Borg, a renowned filmmaker who decides after a long break, to make a film ostensibly about his mother but really about the daughters. He wants Nora, an accomplished stage actress, to star, but upon her immediate refusal, he casts Rachel Kemp, a popular American actress instead. Meanwhile, Agnes, who is married with a young son and decidedly not in the business, takes tentative steps to get closer with him but faces her own struggles with his emotional interference. As the film within the film develops, the lines between life and art get blurrier and blurrier, and Trier even borrows an appropriate allusion to Bergman's "Persona". There are also welcome, unexpected laughs along the way as well. As Borg, Stellan Skarsgård strikes the right balance between megalomania bluster and vulnerability. The three actresses are all superb. Renate Reinsve gives an incisive portrait of an actress caught in a maelstrom of conflicting emotions, while Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas brings credible warmth with subtle moments of rancor to the less showy role of Agnes. The biggest surprise is Elle Fanning who doesn't play Rachel as commercial and vacuous but rather as conscientious and conflicted. The technical elements are aces, in particular, Kasper Tuxen's cinematography, Olivier Bugge Coutté's fluid film editing, and Jørgen Stangebye Larsen's pristine production design.

Director Josh Safdie doesn't like to stay within the confines of one genre or for that matter, within the historical expectations in one period of time. Generally, such revisionist sensibilities can spell disaster for a personality-driven film like this, but Safdie (along with co-writer Ronald Bronstein) revels in the anachronistic spirit of this 2025 period dramedy and creates a unique anti-underdog story that rides on the pervasive cynicism of the title character. Set in 1952 and based on a true story, the plot centers on brazenly selfish Marty Mauser, a young hustler initially stuck selling shoes but with big dreams of becoming the world table tennis champion. Taking no prisoners, he makes it to the London championships but in the finals, loses to a zen Japanese player. Marty seeks revenge and becomes desperate for a rematch in Tokyo. What happens in between the tournaments is challenging to summarize because the loop-de-loop, often criminal escapades take on their own frenetic energy with a gallery of characters which Safdie has cast with an unusual array of unexpected personalities. Even more than his impressive turn as Dylan in "A Complete Unknown", Timothée Chalamet is fully committed to showing Marty to be an unscrupulous Machiavellian and despite his frequent political incorrectness, managing to develop a rooting interest in his character. In a surprisingly welcome return, Gwyneth Paltrow is stylishly effective as an aging film star unhappily married to a rich industrialist and in the midst of a hopeful stage comeback. Entering a torrid affair with Marty, she plays the smallish role of Kay like a mid-century Joan Crawford. As not quite the girl he leaves behind, Odessa D'Azion brings heart and grit to a role that willingly breaks down the victim stereotype. I wish Fran Drescher had more screen time as Marty's put-upon mother because her exhausted knowingness was palpable. Other recognizable faces include Kevin O'Leary of "Shark Tank" ideally cast as Kay's manipulative husband; director Abel Ferrara as a dog-owning gangster; Tyler, the Creator as Marty's only true friend; author Pico Iyer as a tournament official; and Sandra Bernhard as a nosy neighbor. Production designer Jack Fisk and cinematographer Darius Khondji do stellar work capturing the rich look and feel of the early 1950's in multiple locations. The 1980's-heavy soundtrack from Daniel Lopatin works really well almost inexplicably. My one complaint is that the 150-minute running time felt rather long in the middle section.

Rose Byrne proves how resourceful an actor she can be when given the rare opportunity to shine on her own, and director/screenwriter Mary Bronstein provides her a high-wire act that teeters unpredictably between dark comedy and horror. This 2025 character study can be an exasperating, thoroughly dispiriting watch, but Byrne does consistently brave work as Linda, a stressed-out psychotherapist dealing with a needy daughter struggling with a food-related illness. In the midst of a long-gestating nervous breakdown, Linda faces several escalating challenges - a collapsed ceiling, a long-distance unsympathetic husband, her daughter's manipulative doctor (played by Bronstein herself), a mentally unstable patient dealing with new motherhood (an excellent Danielle Macdonald), a nasty hamster, and Linda's own judgmental therapist. In this latter role, Bronstein cast Conan O'Brien who delivers an unironic, strait-jacketed performance. The plot follows Linda in a familiar rut where she can't do anything right, only getting worse in making her desperate choices. The motel superintendent (solid work from ASAP Rocky) is the only character close to sympathetic in Linda's orbit, but he also suffers from her persistent self-loathing. Through it all and often in intense close-ups, Byrne is unafraid to show Linda's utter selfishness but in a manner that's more compelling than repellent. It's truly stellar work in a film almost too relentless in spotlighting her character's dark journey.