Sick of Myself

I didn't expect it to be THIS good. There's a lot of film talent in Scandinavia lately. If you're reading this and the combo "drama, comedy, horror" sounds appealing you can't go wrong with this one (I recommend watching it alone). It does those three genres well with great timing. It's funny, it's horrific, it's devastating and beautiful. A lot of films - most of them really - nail the beginning and then fall apart, or resort to generic formulas for the ending, but a good ending makes it all worth it, gives meaning to the whole thing, I believe it's the most crucial part of a film.

This is really great stuff, a descent into madness presented with intelligence, sensitivy and style, it's up there close to heavy weights like Cronenberg's The Fly or Polanski's Repulsion; and Kristine Kujath Thorp is outstanding, without her there is no film. Besides, she is absolutely gorgeous. This deserves much more attention (ha!).

Watching "Syk Pike" I felt amusement, puzzlement, aversion and compassion. The pursuit of easy glory, a sense of uniqueness and a life for the audience, but still nothing important to show or say. Sounds familiar? All the above aspects are very relatable in our age of social media. The actors did their job very well, and I had no doubts for a moment that they did not fit their characters. The whole movie was well composed, neither too long nor too short. After the movie, I remembered the saying: "stop making stupid people famous" and in my opinion that's the punch line of "Syk Pike".

All kinds of emotions guaranteed and food for thought. A good movie!

There is a lot of social commentary to be found in this film, which revolves around a young woman named Signe, who cannot deal with her pathological need for attention. It not only brings a character portrait of someone suffering from Münchhausen syndrome, but it also highlights topics like how we choose our beauty standards, even with "imperfect" beauty to be politically correct, or how we portray ourselves to the outside world.

A funny dynamic is her relationship with an equally attention hungry boyfriend Thomas: he asked for her help stealing furniture which he makes into his "art" and takes all the credit for himself. The more attention he receives, the more revolted she becomes and vice versa.

The movie starts off fantastically with increasingly absurd social situations and how far people are willing to go for a second in the spotlight. However, the speed decreases halfway through the movie and instead focusses more on the actual sickness Signe forced on herself. Even though her state of being gets worse and worse, the initial lighthearted yet dark humor that worked so well is kind of forgotten. The ending was felt anticlimactic and out of place for a movie that borded on the absurd and extreme during the first half.

The ideas and the script are really great, but all in all I feel the makers did not exactly know how to end the story. It would have been better - in my opinion - if it went out with a bang or at least a bit more on par with the intensity delivered in the beginning.

There's a girl who likes to exceed expectations, just to grab, grasp, claw, pluck, seize, the world's attention, a girl whose boundaries are so wide, it's hard to even give a guide, as she smashes, crashes, bashes her foundations.

Original for sure, as Signe, superbly performed by Kristine Kujath Thorp, captures the eye, refocuses your gaze, turns your head at an angle and distracts with dismay, all for the sake of the brainwashing world so many have come to be seduced, deceived and ensnared by, and the rewards it invariably fails to deliver, as the clock tik toks and the masses fail to take stock, lock and flock.

This is very uncomfortable viewing for any human being who has ever been ignored and wants to be seen and recognized; so probably most in the 7 billion + will be triggered here out of humanity :]

• It truly is a comedy which shows flaws and unbalances in couples and also in society at large
• It makes fun of The Art World The World of Fashion; it makes fun of TV programs Newspapers The Realm of The Internet; nothing is left out ...
• It is clever funny disturbing but not too much of either of these 3; it also has that odd Scandinavian detachment which probably Scandinavians do not perceive and non-Scandinavians do not comprehend.

• I thought that it would be too serious but then the humour started to seep in and out like the main character's face at times; the acting was adequate but not striking
• Is it a comedy; a social commentary; a horror tale? A bit of all of those in a bright nicely furnished story

• Watch it for yourself and decide ...