Julie (en 12 chapitres)

The heroine ofJoachim Trier's latest film 'The Worst Person in the World' (2021) is about 30 years old, but she still hasn't managed to find a profession that would give full meaning to her life, or the man she would like to be with and spend the rest of her life, or what could make her happy. It is, if you wish, the film of her searches and the failure of these searches in a hurried and individualistic world. This contemporary Norwegian counter-heroine is one of the most complex and interesting female characters I have seen on screen in recent years. Renate Reinsve's formidable performance brought her a well-deserved award for female performance at the Cannes Film Festival. This is one of the important reasons, but not the only one for which this film is worth seeing.

Julie (Renate Reinsve) is an intelligent and intellectually gifted young woman. She starts studying medicine and then gives up, starts studying psychology and abandons this as well, decides to become a photographer and works in parallel and as a bookseller at a bookstore. Her parents are divorced, she is closer to her mother (who is worried about her daughter's un-decisions) while her distant and indifferent father is a negative model that probably makes her wary of relationships with men. And yet she falls in love, not with one man but with two: with a comics book writer and cartoonist about 14 years her senior who wants a child and with a seller at a pastry shop who wants to have fun and maybe to get rid of his previous girlfriend who is more interested by ecology and vegetarianism. Time passes, life advances, but it is not clear in which direction.

I guess that one of 'Joachim Trier's sources of inspiration are Woody Allen's older and newer films. The organization of the story in 12 chapters plus a prologue and an epilogue, the well-matched use in this case of off-screen voice, the relationship between lovers separated by age gap, the presence of parents in the lives of mature people, all these they reminded Allen. Even the almost exclusively urban setting seems inspired by his films, with a local touch, of course. If you haven't visited Oslo (like me) by the time you finish watching this movie you will feel the desire to visit this city, which looks colorful, sophisticated, and ... warm (most of the story seems to take place in the summer). The location in time is clear, thanks to the pandemic masks that the characters wear in the epilogue. Just count a few years back. There are at least two chapters in the film with original cinematography that fits well into the logic of the story - the imaginary or real encounter between lovers looking for and finding each other with the rest of the world frozen around and the sequence of the 'experimentation' with hallucinogenic mushrooms. 'The Worst Person in the World' is the story of an imperfect woman with an imperfect life, as are the lives of most of us, a woman who is certainly not the worst person in the world, and the film about her is made interestingly and well acted. Recommended viewing.

Reading the other reviews I am amazed polarizing this film seems to be. When I watched the film a few days ago at the Viennale (Vienna International Film Festival), I would never have thought that it could breed controversy. My feelings about it lie somewhere in between those comments. I never felt it to be boring but I also never thought it groundbreaking in any way. The film, especially in the beginning, has a light approach to the story, almost as if taking its main protagonist not too serious. The narration and chapter style enhances this impression. There are many, quite entertaining, cinematic ideas and moments, most remarkable the long "freeze" sequence and some animation scenes. I found those very fitting in a positive sense since the aim of the character was to find her own way of being. The male versus female relationship question about prospects, identity, future are discussed at length. Sexism is also a theme that creeps up. The film develops a deeper meaning toward the end while the final episode was a kind of let down experience which I don't want to elaborate, otherwise I would need to mark this with spoiler alert.

The acting of all is first class and touching, but why there is such an excitement on the side of the critics eludes me.

Renate Reinsve is giving one of the performances of the year in this turbulent movie about what it's like being alive.

I came home from this and told my wife how much it reminded me of "Annie Hall" at times. And then later I was reading a profile of the writer and director, Joachim Trier, which mentioned that "Annie Hall" specifically was a huge inspiration for him as a film maker. So there you go.

Is Reinsve the worst person in the world? Hardly. She's a warm, loving woman, trying to figure out how to give love to others and yet get what she needs and feels she deserves herself. What happens when those two things seem mutually exclusive? Welcome to human relationships.

The movie is very funny in its first half, and then gets very sad in its last half. But it's never emotionally manipulative. It makes the case that it's ok to look out for yourself and your needs, but also that part of growing as a person is learning that the world isn't all about you.

Grade: A.

What a wonderful film. It's amazing how when you leave Hollywood behind, you find gems like this. Acting, script and direction are all excellent and the film is engaging from start to end.

An achingly human & frighteningly accurate portrait of an entire generation's existential crisis, The Worst Person in the World observes millennial angst through a young woman's quest for love & meaning as she enters into her 30s without any idea about her identity & purpose in life. Crafted with flair & told with utmost honesty, this contemporary rom-com is one of the better films of the year.

Co-written & directed by Joachim Trier, the story is narrated in chapters and covers her four years journey of love & enlightenment in which we see her throw herself into different career paths & new relationships yet never going all the way. While most episodes are interesting & aptly address the film's themes, few of them are way too brief and should've been either left out or integrated with others.

The first half is lighthearted & brimming with a restless, radiant spirit while the later chapters deal with heavier themes and are treated with required seriousness. Renate Reinsve anchors the film with a performance that hits the right emotional notes and is thoroughly convincing. Anders Danielsen Lie & Herbert Nordrum also chip in with strong support and their chemistry with Reinsve is seamless & spot-on.

Overall, The Worst Person in the World is a downright sincere & thoroughly engrossing effort that renders the humanity of its characters with authenticity & compassion. Heartbreaking yet not without hope, this Norwegian dramedy understands the dreaded existential cul-de-sac that comes from not knowing who you are or where you fit in as well as the the crushing feeling of playing a supporting role in your own life story.