Customer Reviews

O' Horten [Blu-ray]

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I came away from "O'Horten" feeling ... well, to be perfectly honestly, I didn't know how to feel about it, and even now, I still don't. This film is such a paradox, at pains to be distant yet able to draw you in and keep you wondering about the story, the characters, and the visuals. It's somber yet amusing at the same time, albeit amusing in that elusive, reflective way, like staring at a photograph of long gone friends from a simpler and happier time. Indeed, the story is one of intense reflection, telling of an aging, pipe-smoking railroad engineer named Odd Horten (Bård Owe) who immediately finds it difficult to accept the realities of his retirement; he's quiet, orderly, and very unassuming, a man so accustomed to a work schedule that he seems genuinely confused when it's no longer there. You don't like him so much as find him very interesting, in large part because he's lived such an uninteresting life.

This subtitled Norwegian film (made in 2007 but just now getting an American theatrical release) is not one of flashy sets or bold special effects, and while some of the characters are genuinely colorful, they're presented in such a matter-of-fact way that they don't come off as extraordinary. They do, however, carry themselves with a pleasant air of curiosity; you may not want to know these people, but you sure wouldn't mind hearing your best friend talk about them. Not long after Horton's retirement, for example, he encounters a good-natured man named Trygve (Espen Skjønberg) lying on the sidewalk; after waking him up and escorting him back to his home, Horten learns that Trygve is a well-travelled diplomat who possesses the unique ability to drive long distances with his eyes closed. He offers to show Horton, and as calmly as can be, Horton says yes.

Much earlier in the film, Horton is supposed to go to a fellow engineer's apartment for a small get together. When he can't get the front door open, Horton climbs to the top floor of the building via scaffolding, enters through the window of another apartment, and finds himself keeping a boy no older than eight company (he wants Horten to stay until he falls asleep). The strange thing is that, in spite of the inherently tense situation, the overall mood is very calm and collected.

We eventually learn about his mother, who sits in a nursing home saying not a word, even when her son is visiting. It can be said, then, that the current state of Horten's mother is symbolic of the state Horten himself is in--detached and lonely, observant of the world around him but unable to take part. Or maybe he's just unwilling. Consider this: In her younger days, Horten's mother was a beautiful ski jumper, something he refused to try simply because he was too afraid. This low key but nonetheless obvious message connects, rather cleverly, with a chunk of meteor Trygve keeps in his home, one he insists has not finished its journey. This in and of itself connects with a quiet but genuinely loving relationship Horten has with a kindly old woman named Fru Thøgersen (Ghita Nørby), who lives way out where the Oslo-Bergen line ends; when Horten announces his retirement, she's greatly pained, knowing he now has no excuse to come visit her. Is Horten pained as well? Yes, although there's the sense that he's either not considering or unaware of other options.

Now, I realize that all of this has to go somewhere, and I admit that it takes a while before we realize it's actually moving forward. I say that both as an observation and as a warning; many, I'm sure, will be bored to tears sitting through this film, and many more will be more than a little confused by some inexplicable images, such as a man dressed in a business suit sliding down an ice-covered street. But if you watch "O'Horten," and I mean really watch it, you just might find that it has something to offer. It can lure you in, but it makes few overt statements, and it never forces you to notice anything. It simply presents the material, and whatever you get from it, you get from it. If there is, in fact, a way to account for what we're seeing and why, I feel ashamed for having missed it.

That being said, I'm glad for having the chance to see "O'Horten." It presented a welcome detour into a quieter, more elusive area of filmmaking, one that successfully got me to actually think about what I was watching. I didn't come to too many conclusions, I admit, but I did enjoy the process of trying to reach one. This movie, from my point of view, would do well in film schools as a study in camerawork, imagery, symbolism, and character analysis. It seems that writer/director Bent Hamer wants the story to do more than merely entertain the audience; he wants it to be an intellectual process, a way for audiences to delve deeply into the material and interpret what they find. Not everyone will respond to this movie--that much I know. But for those who are willing and able, I recommend you give this one a shot. It will probably make it worth your while.