Oslo, August 31st
| Oslo, August 31st | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Joachim Trier |
| Screenplay by | Joachim Trier Eskil Vogt |
| Produced by | Hans-Jørgen Osnes Yngve Sæther |
| Starring | Anders Danielsen Lie Hans Olav Brenner Ingrid Olava |
| Cinematography | Jakob Ihre |
| Edited by | Olivier Bugge Coutté |
| Music by | Torgny Amdam Ola Fløttum |
| Distributed by | Strand Releasing |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | Norway |
| Language | Norwegian |
Oslo, August 31st (Norwegian: Oslo, 31. august) is a 2011 Norwegian drama film directed by Joachim Trier. It is loosely based on the novel Will O' the Wisp by Pierre Drieu La Rochelle. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.[1][2] It won the prizes for Best Film and Best Cinematography at the 2011 Stockholm International Film Festival; jury president Whit Stillman described the film as "a perfectly painted portrait of a generation".[3] It was one of three films on the Norwegian shortlist for submissions to the 84th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film.[4]
Plot
Anders is a recovering drug addict in an Oslo rehab clinic. On 30 August, he is given a day's leave to attend a job interview in the city center. After visiting his friend Thomas, he proceeds to his appointment. In the interview, he admits to being a drug addict and storms out. He then wanders the streets of Oslo for the rest of the day and night, meeting, and sometimes confronting, people from his past. The film ends the next day, 31 August. Anders, who has bought some drugs on his day away from the rehab clinic, retreats to a room and injects.
Cast
- Anders Danielsen Lie as Anders
- Hans Olav Brenner as Thomas
- Ingrid Olava as Rebekka
- Tone Mostraum as Tove
Reception
Oslo, August 31st has received widespread critical acclaim from both film critics and audiences. Review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes reports that 98% of critics have given the film a positive review, based on 57 reviews with an average rating of 8.2/10. The general consensus being: "An upfront study of a drug addict confronting his demons, Oslo, August 31st makes this dark journey worthwhile with fantastic directing and equally fantastic acting." Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, reports the film has a score of 84. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film four out of four stars and said the film is "quietly, profoundly, one of the most observant and sympathetic films I've seen".[5] Ebert went on to name it the ninth best film of the year in his annual list.[6]
References
- ^ "Festival de Cannes: Official Selection". Cannes. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
- ^ "Cannes film festival 2011: The full lineup". guardian.co.uk. London. 14 April 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
- ^ Dawtrey, Adam (20 November 2011). "'Oslo' tops Stockholm fest". Variety. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
- ^ "Norway names three Oscar candidates". norwegianfilms. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
- ^ "Oslo, August 31". rogerebert. 29 August 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
- ^ Ebert, Roger. "Ebert's Top Movies of 2012". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
