Oddvar Einarsson's fictional feature debut X from 1986 is a film which have come high on score on important Norwegian films. This won the Jury's special prize at the Venezia Film Festival and Amanda Award for best film at the Norwegians Film Festival in Haugesund. It was also voted number 9 of the most important Norwegian films by film makers when Norwegian film celebrated 100 years anniversary.
The film is vibrantly showing the 80ies Oslo we remember. It feels like a documentary in style, but is still quite arty. Some shoots are sheer artwork. However watching it today might make you wonder why this was a prizewinner. Today it seems dated and quite amateurish, and very eighties. Norwegian filmmaking, as all, has come a long way since then, thankfully.
We meet the grittiest parts of Oslo, where some opening scenes is taken from house occupied by left wing house occupants. Houses which are to be torn down, but are occupied by young strays who have run away from home, or youngsters which need cheap living in a city with high housing prices.
The concert clip after 30 minutes, in a occupied house with the later well known Norwegian rockband Backstreet Girls is amazing, and I was a big fan of the band back then. The band originated in 1984, and this is a very early concert clip from their career, made in 1985. They're still alive and vibrantly kicking ass with the same members as back then! Music by Holy Toy is used throughout the movie.
We meet the photographer John Gabriel in his mid 20ies (played by later on famed musician and highly important Norwegian guitarist Jørn Christensen of Mercury Motors, CanCan, DePress, Circus Modern, Thinkerbell, CC Cowboys among others) which coincidentally meets 13 year old Flora (debuting Bettina Banoun later only to be seen in Thomas Robsahms debut Svarte Pantere/Rebels with a Cause) which have nowhere to sleep.They start off a love affair due to her need for affection. The film is more about art, finding yourself and loneliness than anything else.
Don't expect any sleazy stuff here! The love affair is just sweet superficial stuff. Very interesting time capsule from mid eighties Oslo, and fun to see a lot of well known artists in gallery vernissages and a couple of other situations. It enhances the realty feeling. This is interesting mostly to those wanting to update themselves on Norwegian films, those wanting to see the time capsule of Oslo and others with special interests.
This is released on DVD with good quality. This film had a long time in though and production. It was turned down already in 1974, and Einarsson himself says on an interview on the DVD that he was an angry young man back then. He had big problems in finding the finances to realize this and other films. He was especially angry on the Norwegian film milieu, and on imperialistic Cinemascope film making. The film turned up simpler than originally planned. He painted a huge X on a wall in downtown Oslo before he succeeded in getting the film financed.
Oddvar Einarsson made some films after this, but didn't copy th success from this. He was then back in the same financing situation as he was before X. He made a comeback in 2012 with the documentary "Finanseventyret", about a financial banking scandal in Norway, 22 years after his last feature film.
