JUNK MAIL (34)

Directed by: Pal Sletaune

Starring: Robert Skjaerstad, Andrine Saether, Per Egil Aske

The Pitch: Exploits of a downtrodden, none-too-ethical Norwegian postman.

Theo Sez: Further proof that "Scandinavian" and "comedy" rarely go together - though in fact this only occasionally seems designed for out-and-out laughs. The emphasis is instead on ugliness, painting Oslo as a thoroughly rude, scuzzy sort of place, with special reference to porn mags, blowsy harridans, vomit-stained jackets, slimy TV dinners, stale bread rolls, dirty dishes in dingy sinks, and vile apartments with mucus-green paint peeling on the walls. All it really needs is the artful self-awareness Kaurismaki might've given it, or W.C. Fields might've found (the cheap watch that's our hero's reward for courage in the line of duty isn't a million miles from Egbert Sousé's "hearty handclasp") - a suggestion, in other words, that what we're seeing is deliberately exaggerated, a reductio ad absurdum for "Shit Happens" ; but it never comes, and the result feels merely drab (and vaguely unpleasant). It has its moments - "Georg" now joins the likes of Elmer and Eugene on the list of Intrinsically Funny Names - just not enough of them ; and what the hell's up with the Boris Karloff references?