Oslo, August 31st (Joachim Trier)

[Silaron]

Trier's achievement in this film is that he didn't make it so dramatic. Everything Anders went through on the day he was out was a natural reaction to his surroundings. Speaking of the surroundings,the cinematography of the film was top notch. There was a balance between light and dark and as the film progressed, it became darker which paralleled Anders emotions because he felt disconnected from the world. The montages of Oslo, Norway in the beginning and the end of the film were great and made me want to visit its cobblestone streets, parks, and cafes.

[mr. ngoc]

I saw it last night, a powerful film. I do connect with the character's sense of being an outsider and that helplessness when you felt stuck between past and present, and just scared to change your life. It haunted me for a day, which I think is quite a personal record lol Since I'm at this point in my life when I'm just not ready for the world, I kinda find the cafe scene irritating (I know it's emotional and it demonstrates the constrast between Anders and that girl's "normal" life and how hopeless he is) I still think the scene's heartbreaking tho. My favourite moment is when Anders said "Look at my life. I'm 34 years old. I've got nothing. I don't want to start from scratch.". But the haunting one is undobutedly the ending. I also think the movie has some moments that make me wonder how personal it is to the director.

Curious, how do you guy interprete the title "Oslo, August 31st". In a way, it's telling us about his fate. I also think it has a theme of transition behind - which was also in the movie (especiall in regards to the city Oslo - the intro of the movie) (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/17/t-...rn-lights.html)

Also, do you guys have any theory surrounding the character Iselin? (Another fact: all the characters don't have last names if I remember correctly - wonder why?. Anders' real life girlfriend is also named Iselin she is actually the girl in David Bowie's "The Stars (are out tonight)".)