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Film Review : The Movie ' Oslo '

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Process Paper One: Oslo, August 31st
The film I chose to watch and review was a 2011 Norwegian film titled Oslo, August 31st. The film dealt with addiction, relapse and suffering. I chose this film primarily for two reasons: First, it was listed on the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) as a film that explores drug use, suffering and suicide (co-occurring disorders). Secondly, I selected it because it is a Foreign / Norwegian film. I am a huge Art-house and European films fan and was thrilled that film was available on Netflix. The film’s screenplay was written and directed by veteran Norwegian cinematographer Joachim Trier. The film stars Norwegian actor Anders Lies and was filmed entirely in and around Olso.

Trier described his film as a loose adaptation of a 1930’s French novel Le feu follet (“Will’o the Whisp”) by Pierre La Rochelle. La Rochelle’s novel was about a young man ravaged by a life of hard living and addiction. Suicidal thoughts permeate both the novel and film. These topics are as relevant as ever. Oslo, August 31st was screened at both the Cannes and Sundance film festivals in 2012. The film has received overwhelmingly positive reviews.

In the film, our protagonist is “Anders” (same name as the actor), a 32 year old Norwegian man living in Oslo. During the first few moments we learn Anders is a recovering heroin addict and has been living in an in-patient residential facility in the outskirts of Oslo for approximately ten months. Although
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