In Joachim Trier’s sixth feature film (the first one after 2021’s widely acclaimed The Worst Person in the World), Gustav Berg (Stellan Skarsgard) is a movie director determined to make a new feature after a 10-year hiatus. He wants his daughter Nora (Renate Reinsve, one of Europe’s hottest and most prolific stars, working with Trier for the second time) to star in it in a role inspired by his own mother. She is a successful stage actress. in her own right. To her dad’s disappointment, Nora refuses the offer. She does not want to work closely with the man who divorced her mother as a child. Her more introspective sister Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lille) is supportive of her decision. So Gustav hires beautiful and talented American actress Rachel Kemp (Elle Fanning) to play the film lead.
A rollercoaster of emotions ensues, with family secrets and fears gradually surfacing. The semi-autobiographical project begins to take its toll on the family, with the frail relationships and allegiances suddenly brought into turmoil. “Sentimental” does not mean melodramatic, Do not expect the rollercoaster emotions of Almodovar, but the far more collected Scandinavian spirit instead. Despite the conflicts, feathers remain mostly unruffled. Mistrust and grudges are resolved in a calm and civilised way. The big problem is that suicide always remains on the cards – both in the Gustav’s script and in the real life of his family. Nora and Agnes are soon to find out that the yet-t0-be realised film has a lot more of them than they first thought. The prospect of such a brutally honest family portrait being put to film intimidates them.
Meanwhile, Rachel doubts her own ability to deliver the role. She senses that the story is just too personal and local for her. She feels like an intruder, despite Gustav’s unshakeable admiration and trust in her. She secretly rehearses speaking English with a Scandinavian accent, in one of the movie’s funniest scenes. This is a movie peppered with hilarious little moments. Another highlight includes Gustav pointing to Michael Haneke’s disturbing Piano Teacher (2001) while describing “the perfect woman”.
Fifty-one year old Danish-Norwegian filmmaker Trier questions the relationship between artistry and humanity with tacit and profound interrogations. Is it brave or is it exploitative to inject your work with your family history, even casting your relatives? Should an actor embrace their character regardless of their insecurities, or is that dishonest toward the directors and the viewers? And ultimately: is filmmaking a cathartic or a sadomasochistic endeavour? In other words, should film directors seek to purge their own demons on the film set, or just eave them at home? These questions refer to the filmmaker who doubles as the screenwriter (in line with the European concept of auteur, the main topic of another Cannes film this year).
The house too is a character here. It has memories and sentiments. The facade and the furniture are replaced, just like people change their clothes. The walls are ticklish, we are immediately reassured. The scars too are still palpable: this is where someone took their own life. Could this be the setting for Gustav’s next film? Or should he build a place that’s consistent with his creative vision? Is realism better than Tarkosky-esque symbolism (the Russian director famously rebuilt the house where he grew from memory, in 1975’s Mirror)? Cinema allows for these possibilities and more. It all depends on the approach Gustav is willing to take. The answer comes at the heartwarming end of this 135-minute drama.
The topic of filmic authenticity is also there. Rachel’s insecurity raises some very practical questions. Does Gustav really want to make this very personal film in English? Wouldn’t it seem strange if everyone had a Scandinavian accent, while the protagonist is clearly American? While Americans are used to turning foreign stories into films entirely spoken in English, Europeans tend to preserve the original tongue of their creations. It is an interesting inversion that precisely the American character should harbour such concern.
Abruptly cutting climactic scenes, with unexpected pregnant pauses, have become one of Trier’s trademarks. He does that every time Nora treads of the theatre stage. These bathetic devices are equivalent mid-coitus interruptions, or sexual edging. The director seeks to extend pleasure by preventing his viewers from achieving a filmic orgasm too early on. It feels a little awkward. And yet it works. In order to enjoy Sentimental Value you must open your mind and allow Trier to experiment with his narrative kinks on you. The outcome can be very rewarding.
A sparse, gentle and vaguely emo music score infuses the movie with a touch of gentleness and nostalgia. This is a warm little film asking some fiery big questions about the nature of cinema and the human heart. At times little protracted and prosaic, but still well worth the ride.
Sentimental Value premiered in the Official Competition of 78th Cannes International Film Festival, when this piece was originally written. Also showing in Karlovy Vary, Sarajevo, San Sebastian Film Festival, and the BFI London Film Festival. In cinemas on Friday, December 26th.
