Review of Hawaii, Oslo (2004) by Mike C — 19 Feb 2012
I feel like I've been tricked a little. That's usually a no-no. Until then, I thought this was quite a fine Norwegian flick. It still may be. But movie tricks just don't do it for me. (Actually, in the time it's taken to write some of this I've decided it's quite smart and bumped it up to an 8/10.
The movie is the intertwining of several stories: a couple having a child, a suicidal, a con, a person in a mental hospital. Oh, you've heard that one already?! It's quite slow and pretty interesting. You know from the first scene of the movie where all the characters will be at the end. The story then starts over of sorts on this hottest day in Oslo. That's a great use of drama or irony or whatever it is. You know how the story will end but don't know how it will get there. There are clues along the way to make it more engaging. Finally, the ending comes and it's not quite what you expect. That, I have a problem with.
New find: It just hit me that I wasn't necessarily tricked. In that case, it's a pretty slick movie. You won't learn anything from it, so it could be a waste of time, but it is a nice, dark, well-acted drama.
This review of Hawaii, Oslo (2004) was written by Mike C on 19 Feb 2012.
Hawaii, Oslo has generally received positive reviews.
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