Posted: 09/25/2002

Elling

(2002)

by Laura Abraham

Through a friendship born of desperate dependence, two people discover they can not only survive, but can thrive on their courage, finding oddball ways to cope with society and striking up the most peculiar friendships in the most unlikely places.

When one imagines Norwegian film many people do not normally think lighthearted, comical cinema. I have to admit I think long drawn out character studies directed with a darker vision, such as an Ingmar Bergman film. After viewing Elling, my preconceived notions of Norwegian cinema were shattered.

Elling, directed by Petter Næss, is a heartfelt and insightful look into the inner world of two men living together after being released from a mental hospital. Elling (Per Christian Ellefsen) is put in the hospital initially due to an inability to deal with the death of his mother. He is the epitome of a momma’s boy and doesn’t hide the fact he is obsessed and unable to cope without her. Elling really finds it near impossible to cope with many small details of life. He is not unaware of his quirkiness however, as he notes in one scene. He comments on his inability to move alone through a restaurant while other “normal” people in the world can travel to exotic locales on their own. He many have some difficulties navigating through life but he is not so challenged he doesn’t see these things within himself.

Kjell, Elling’s roommate, cannot stop thinking of sex. Sven Nordin, who has been extremely popular in his homeland of Norway since he starred in an extremely popular sitcom, portrays Kjell. Kjell hasn’t had sex thus far in his life and so much of his world and daily existence is spent thinking of it.

Elling is returning to the outside world, after having spent two years in a psychiatric hospital. . He has been lucky enough to receive a council flat and is allowed to live there with his roommate Kjell, a simple man.

Elling’s naivety leads him to believe the outer world is normal and stable. He has forgotten the general discord in which the world functions. As we all know, the world is anything but secure and the situations these men find themselves in is both heartwarming and heartfelt. I very much felt protective of these characters right off the bat. I cannot say I identified with them, as I have never struggled with or known anyone to have struggled with the exact personality disorder of these two. What really kept me watching was their very awkwardness in life and learning to negotiate in the world. This made me feel protective of them and wanted them very much to succeed. To some degree or at least at some point in our lives many of us have felt the kinds of pressures Elling feels. Regular situations are highly charged for him. Take for example his attempts to buy a train ticket. When he is asked a simple question of, “One way?” he becomes visibly confused and considers the questions for quite some time. His reply of “Is there more than one way” is hilarious! There is clearly numberous ways to interpret simple everyday questions and Elling reminds us of that.

Difficulties with simple tasks are part of the reason for Elling’s initial stay so one can only imagine what daily navigation would do to this sensitive soul.

With a strong will, increasing courage and a little bit of help (together with the threat of being sent back to the psychiatric ward), Elling and Kjell stumble along this new path of life. Soon numerous situations arise where the two easily terrified men must really give it their best shot out in the world.

I feel it would be easy to write this film off as just another sickly sweet look at the curious behavior of the mentally ill. On the surface this film looks as though it was merely a saccharin rendition of Rain man or Nuts, and to be fair it does have some elements of these types of films. But to give it its fair shake, Elling is so much more. It is about the struggle for stability in a highly chaotic world. It is the world of the innocent and this is something so very rare in film today. When a director is brave enough to give a very innocent film a life and a voice in this time of over confident, sarcastic characters in film, it makes me want to see more.

In all honesty, Elling takes a while to get used to. At first you feel as though you should dislike it on principle. The grandstanding and emotional spoon-feeding is a bit hard to handle and seemed too American at first. Once it becomes clear there is more below the surface it is easier to let oneself go and enjoy the unfolding of this character.

Elling was nominated for an Academy Award in the category of best foreign film. It lost to Amelie, another great film about navigating through life. Elling found itself a bit luckier with other festivals however, and walked away with six other major wins at various international festivals.

Elling is adapted from the book by Ingvar Ambjørnsen and was performed earlier as a stage production. Both Ellfinson and Nordin starred in the same roles for the film as they did for the stage, which is why they are so consistently good at working in these character’s skins. They clearly understand their characters and move easily and confidently around in them.

Elling is a joy to watch for a number of reasons. The directing was a nice mix of comedy and drama with competent actors carrying off both aspects of the film. As long as one is able to suspend the sort of cynicism of contemporary urban life this film about two innocents is a pleasure to watch.

Laura Abraham is a freelance living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which is about 20 minutes outside Detroit.

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