House Lannister, the drummer of U2, and “Kitchen Stories”. Two Norwegian masters of cinema at Tofifest
This year, we will have the honour to play host to two extraordinary film-makers from Norway. One is Bent Hamer, author of “Kitchen Stories”, and the other is Erik Poppe, director of “A Thousand Times Good Night”. Both film-makers will present their films in Torun and meet with audiences. Now, what do House Lannister and the drummer of U2 have to do with all that? Keep on reading.
Both Hamer and Poppe will be guests to the Masters section of the festival. No wonder, since both are considered to be outstanding individuals of European cinema. Kafka Jaworska, director of Tofifest, has invited them, because of her love for Scandinavian cinema. “I am a big fan of Norwegian cinema. I believe that films of both artists as just as inspirational for young film-makers, as films by Almodovar and von Triers once were,” she said in an interview for “Ikar” monthly (Guide to Culture and Art in Torun, published once a month).
Cult suits him
Bent Hamer is the author of such “hits” of auteur cinema, as “Kitchen Stories” or “Factotum”. “Kitchen Stories” (Salmer fra kjøkkenet, 2003) is a tragicomic film and at the same the most popular of his films – it was nominated as a Norwegian candidate for Academy Awards. “Bent Hamer is capable of transforming a recording of paint drying up into a thoroughly funny comedy,” one of film critics working for the Guardian wrote about the film, giving the film a cult status.
“Factotum” (2004) is based on a famous novel written by the American poet and writer Charles Bukowski. The main protagonist in the film was portrayed by Matt Dillon (nominated for Academy Awards for his role in “Crash”). Bent Hamer made his latest film in 2014 – it was “1001 Grams”. It is yet another detached and ironic story about human absurdities. And we truly mean absurdities, as the film revolves around the problem of the true weight of ... 1 kilogram.
“He is sensitive to absurd and tracks down appearances of a happy life, underneath which there is only existential emptiness,” a reviewer from “Polityka” weekly wrote about the director.
Bent Hamer was nominated for European Film Awards and his films won awards at film festivals in Copenhagen, Ghent, São Paulo, Moscow, Toronto, and also received the Norwegian Amanda Award.
Jaime Lannister and the drummer of U2 were featured in his films
The other guest from Norway is Erik Poppe. He is a film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer, who has been walking down his own original film path for many long years. In the past, he was a war photojournalist, and now he is not afraid to discuss the most difficult aspects of contemporary times, in his films.
And that is very true for the so-called “Oslo Trilogy”, the first part of which – Schpaaa/Bunch Of Five (“Schpå”, 1998) – portrays the world of young street gangs in Oslo, started by children of emigrants, from the inside. However, the most popular film made by Erik Poppe is the second part of the trilogy, i.e. “Hawaii, Oslo” (2004) that won the Amanda Award for the Best Norwegian Film.
In “A Thousand Times Good Night” (2013), Erik sort of critically reviews his past, when he worked as a war photojournalist. In the film, the story is told from the perspective of a woman, who is a reporter torn between her work and family. The character is played by Juliette Binoche and her partner in the film is Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, who has won the hearts of audiences all over the world as Jaime Lannister in “Game of Thrones”.
As far as “A Thousand Times Good Night” is concerned, we must mention the figure of Larry Mullen, drummer of U2. Erik Poppe cast him for the film, when he was shooting in Ireland. For safety reasons, the director needed to transfer the entire film production from Afghanistan and Kenya to Éire. The drummer portrays one of the friends of the film family of the war journalist.
This year, the Norwegian director has completed work on his new film “The King’s Choice” (Kongens Nei, 2016). It is a film about Haakon VII, King of Norway, who refused to succumb to the German invasion of Norway.
When asked about the reasons behind abandoning photography for the sake of film, he commented: “I make films now and what I find particularly interesting about them, just as I did about photography, is the courage to ask uncomfortable questions, without imposing unnecessary political correctness.”
And that makes him a perfect guest to the “rebellious” Tofifest festival.
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