If you read my post on the films I'm most anticipating the rest of the year, you'll know that this was the absolute number one movie for me. Joachim Trier's The Worst Person in the World is simply one of the most important movies in the world to me, and I will forever cherish the opportunity to be at the Canadian premiere of his latest with the four main pieces of his incredible cast also in attendance.
A pair of sisters, Nora (Renate Reinsve) and Agnes (Igna Ibsdotter Lilleaas), reunite with their somewhat estranged father Gustav (Stellan Skarsgard). Gustav is a well regarded filmmaker and after a fairly long hiatus he is coming back to the scene with a film he wrote specifically for Nora. Despite the opportunity to elevate her career as an actress, Nora refuses working with him due to their complicated relationship, leaving Gustav to bring on the American star Rachel Kemp (Elle Fanning). What follows is an at times hilarious, and times heartbreaking, and at all times moving portrait of the complicated nature of family, sisterhood, and art.
While it isn't specifically separated into chapters like in The Worst Person in the World, Trier does approach this as if each scene is a chapter or track on an album. It can throw you off at times the way he just cuts to black, but it has such a brilliant ability to make you stick with the emotions of the scene for an extra moment. From a filmmaking standpoint you can argue this is a step up from all his previous work, as the narrative is filled with so much history and so many different ideas that somehow all meld together into a near perfect final product. Some of his ideas visually I found really fascinating, and he uses settings, especially the family's home, almost as characters in their own right. The family home plays a huge role in the film and you can truly feel the history throughout each room of it. On the topic of characters though I think creating great characters may be where Trier and his co-writer Eskil Vogt excel most. Each of the main four characters are extremely complex, and without much exposition Trier shows us all the different pieces of their persona. The performances certainly help, but the characters are all so well written with all their imperfections that it's hard not to empathize with each one of them even when they're at odds with one another.
Reinsve is among my favourite actresses working right now and I'm thrilled she has this to hopefully skyrocket her to further success. This is a much more subdued performance than I think we've seen from her, but it's one where you can see the emotions bubbling under the surface in a similar way to Paul Mescal in Aftersun. She does have moments where she has to emote a little more and all the time spent with her bottling things only make those moments hit harder. Ibsdotter Lilleaas is perhaps the heart of the film, playing the younger sister that really just wants her family to feel connected and the only core character who finds herself outside of the film/theatre world. I honestly adored every moment she was on screen, she's a real revelation. Stellan Skarsgard is of course fantastic, giving a performance that gives you so many conflicted feelings. As a father he certainly dropped the ball but you can see him trying in his own way, while also struggling to balance the family side with his need to create art. I was also really impressed by Elle Fanning. She plays a character oozing with confidence and the desire to prove herself, but one struggling to connect with a role that was clearly designed for something else. It's a fascinating idea for an actor to take on and like the others I found it really easy to empathize with her. My only gripe is that I wish we maybe got a bit more of her.
As with The Worst Person in the World, this is a stunning looking film. Whoever it is location scouting for Trier needs a raise because the settings he films in always look so beautiful yet so lived in and genuine. There's too many gorgeous shots for me to count, but even just the thought behind some of the cinematography especially in terms of camera movement feels so on point. The music is also really beautiful all while building the energy all throughout. Honestly I thought this was just near perfect, Trier is a master of character and relationships and this felt incredibly personal and really touched me. 5/5
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