The Bothersome Man

Although the beginning of this neat little allegory on modern life suggests Wim Wender's Paris, Texas (1984) it is David Lynch's Eraserhead that proves the most insistent point of comparison. The location is now a contemporary antiseptically metrosexual world of cold metal, glass and piped music, inner-city clubs and designer apartments but the profound alienation of the central character, caught in some strange universe that he does not understand is very similar to Lynch's classic.

Based on a radio play by Per Schreiner who also penned the screenplay, it tells the story of a thirty-something Oslo accountant, Andreas (Trond Fausa Aurvag), who jumps onto a track in front of a train then suddenly finds himself in an alternate universe where everything is bland and imperturbably well-ordered. The film takes its time to develop its point, only relatively late in the piece revealing its hand, but John Christian Rosenlund's cinematography and Are Sjaastad's minimalist production design and an effective score by Ginge Anvik all help to make this a wryly bent journey into the land of existential nightmares.

DVD Extras: Theatrical trailer

Available from: Madman

 

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