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Andrea Bræin Hovig as Anja with Ada (Dina Enoksen Elvehaug), her father (Einar Økland), Henrik (Eirik Hallert), Julie (Elli Rhiannon Müller Osbourne), Isak (Daniel Storm Forthun Sandbye), Tomas (Stellan Skarsgård), Erlend (Alfred Vatne), and Simon (Steinar Klouman Hallert) in Maria Sødahl’s Hope (Håp)

The performances in Maria Sødahl’s stunning piece of auto-fiction are superb. Hope (Håp), which is Oscar-shortlisted, couples Andrea Bræin Hovig as Anja and Stellan Skarsgård as Tomas. When the worst is confirmed, namely that the lung cancer Anja overcame the previous year may have spread to the brain, nothing in their world stays the same.

Andrea Bræin Hovig in her writing and sewing studio in Oslo

Tomas, whose mind, we learn, had been mainly occupied with his work producing in the theatre, will have to make a choice to either fully support Anja or withdraw into the escape of the regions he seems to be so familiar with.

Believe the accolades: Maria Sødahl’s perceptive, heartfelt “Hope” richly deserves all the attention it’s gotten at festivals and award ceremonies since premiering in Toronto in 2019. Naturally, any movie with such a title dealing with a terminal cancer diagnosis will have some kind of sting, but “Limbo” director Sødahl, who mined her own brush with cancer when writing the film, teases out the unexpected byways where hope is not just crushed but nurtured. , not just for the multi-layered screenplay but the impeccable performances by Andrea Bræin Hovig and Stellan Skarsgård. As Norway’s Oscar submission, “Hope” prompts high expectations.

Boosting attention will be the announcement that Nicole Kidman is executive producing a television series with her Blossom Films company based on the feature (rights had been purchased by Amazon Studios), with the star in the lead role. Given the plot’s extended family dynamics, there’s certainly material enough...