Big Picture Big Sound

Hope Springs Perfectly

Maria Sødahl's drama, Norway's entry for Best Foreign Film, is extremely powerful because of its subject matter and because it contains no moments that don't feel real, most likely because the director experienced something very similar to the main character.

Anja (Andrea Braein Hovig) is diagnosed with a recurrence of cancer that a year earlier she had been told she had beaten. She has a large family that she shares with her partner, Tomas (Stellan Skarsgǎrd) Both of them have children with other partners as well as children together. Their relationship isn't great or terrible. It just is.

The recurrence of her cancer exposes the problems between them, yet also brings out the good parts, too. It's not a simple or straightforward tale, just like real life, and that's the great strength of "Hope". It's what draws you in and lets you accept both of them as is, without portraying them as noble or weak. They are both doing the best they can under extremely high-pressure conditions.

The entire film takes place within about two weeks, beginning a few days before Christmas and ending a few days after New Years. It begins with the large family planning their annual get-together for Christmas. Anja isn't feeling very well so Tomas takes her to the hospital for tests. The results show a tumor in her brain that may have spread from her previous bout with lung cancer.

Anja is particularly worried about telling the children, besides her obvious fears that come from that type of diagnosis. The outlook is bleak for survival, but not impossible. The film pays particular attention to how the extended family and close friends deal with the news and it's all incredibly genuine. It's not melodramatic nor played for cheap laughs.

One of the things I particularly liked was the ending. It's perfect, much like a lot of what happened before it. Granted, because of the pandemic, I have seen less movies than usual, but "Hope" would be a standout in a normal year, too.