Le vieux qui ne voulait pas fêter son anniversaire

Rarely is a film this engaging, entertaining and unpredictable, in any language! The story, present and past, of Allan Karlsson grabs you from the start. It reminded me of Peter Sellers performance in Being There. In fact, all the performances worked, from the care home workers, dim-witted bikers, bored detective and world leaders.

I had no idea what to expect, only that it was Sweden's third biggest film after the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and the Girl that played with fire (also both excellent films, in very different ways).

I really should rate it a 10, as there is nothing to criticise about the film, except to say that it is clearly not The Godfather, nor intended to be. However, for what it is, it is brilliant.

If you like to be surprised and entertained, I cannot really think of anyone that wouldn't enjoy watching this. Find it. Watch it. Enjoy!

The type of humor that is used in this movie was so refreshing. I love dark comedies, and I love dark humor. I appreciated it even more because it was by no means a dark movie. It was incredible how they made such a lighthearted movie with such dark comedy. Think Secondhand Lions meets Forrest Gump, I know, it's worth it though. The main Character was so nonchalant it was endearing. His care free attitude was refreshing and easy to watch. The supporting cast is what really makes the movie for me though. I don't know who any of these actors are, but the casting Director did such a good job. They all melded so well together. They fed off each other's presence and they were able to share scenes extremely well with each other. It was very play-esque in that regard.

Having read some of the other reviews I will simply say, if you take this movie too seriously you've already lost the point. If you look for flaws you're bound to find them, however, it's such a fun movie. It's light, it's dark, and personally, just a funny movie.

Not really of course, but I wouldn't be surprised if some would make that comparison. That old man also seems to have left his mark in history. And while I haven't read the book, I can tell you that the movie is funny in a weird way. Something that you might expect from something with a title like that.

The story moves along nicely with interceptions from time to time, that tell us what happened when he was younger. And also are there to show us what sort of character he is. It's tough to really threaten a man of his age. The actor playing him is much younger of course, which we can see when he plays the younger version in the flashbacks. The makeup is more than decent enough in the "now". Really nice and good, this movie is entertaining

This film follows the progress of Allan Karlsson, a simple man with a predilection for blowing things up, after he leaves his nursing home to embark on a journey that will take him wherever it takes him. Through flashbacks we see that this is a metaphor for his entire life. Karlsson has, it turns out, been with several significant figures of the 20th century and, unwittingly, has profoundly affected its course.

The film is comic, darkly comic, absurdist, farcical, a chase caper, an espionage thriller and, finally, peaceful. It is all of these things successfully in a way that Wes Anderson's "The Grand Budapest Hotel" attempted to be, but didn't quite manage. More importantly, the characters are entirely believable despite the often fantastical story lines. It is also beautifully shot.

"Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans." — Allen Saunders

Thoroughly recommended.

This movie is extremely funny. From the moment the old man crawls out of the window until the very end of the movie, it is a stitch. It is fast paced and all the characters are well drawn and fleshed out, even characters that only appear near the end of the movie. I was reminded of Peter Seller's movie "Being There" and, yes, there was a bit of "Forrest Gump" in it. I did not object to the "violent" deaths that some of the characters experienced because they were so over the top that they could not be taken seriously and the audience apparently agreed with me since everyone was howling with laughter. We saw the movie at the Chicago Film Festival and it was one of the few times I have attended a film festival when the entire audience stood up and clapped at the end of the movie.