It's morning and ginger-haired big-eyed Leni (Ane Dahl Torp) meticulously makes an open-topped avocado-pear sandwich for herself. She eats it carefully while her father Mr Farsethås (Knut Husebø) eats his austere breakfast, questions her on her satisfactory bowel movements, and reads his book.

The action of Lønsj takes place mainly in a couple of city blocks of flats in Vibe Street, Oslo, Norway. In another flat sensual Heidi (Pia Tjelta) dresses, debating over the practical white pants and bra which she wears - the nipples of her ample breasts prominent - and a more erotic black pair. Her man Odd (Kyrre Haugen Sydness) lies naked in bed, his left wrist bandaged. Their baby Johannes (Hektor Faldbakken-Sørhaug) wakes in his cot.

In another flat auburn-haired gay Christer (Aksel Hennie) eats a piece of toast and drinks fruit juice. He carefully adjusts his hair in the mirror,and avoids his friend and landlord Bjørn Olaf (Pål Stokka) who wants the overdue rent. He sets off to work but a gull shits on his shirt, so he ducks under the fence into the basement laundry of the block of flats next door and puts it in the washing machine. The power goes off, so he tries the fuses, damages the switchboard and wrenches his sodden shirt from the machine. Bespeckled and pedantic Mr Kildahl (Bjørn Floberg) appears and interrogates him. Christer quickly leaves. In the darkness with the fuses out, Kildahl and the janitor (Pål Sverre Valheim Hagen) fumble with the switchgear, reconnect it. There's a cry and a thump above them - Mr Farsethås has fallen down dead. Daughter Leni peeps from a door, sees the body, does nothing and retires back to her room.

Odd is furious that Heidi has left his new jeans wet from the washing machine breakdown - which has affected everyone in the flats, they all use it. She grovels continually saying how stupid she is. He hits her hard across the face. He's off to his new job with the estate agents who own the blocks of flats. With Mr Farsethås dead, the flat must be re-let, and he gets Heidi to pack her single suitcase and shows her out to the street. Mr Kildahl gently takes his wife Karin (Anneke von der Lippe) to the lavatory in her wheelchair, then helps her into her dining chair, begging her not to piss - but she pisses, and he gently helps her back to the lavatory. Christer is evicted and goes round his employer Margret (Celine Engebrigtsen) and friend Erlend (Jan Gunnar Røise) trying unsuccessfully to borrow money. Leni eats a little at the kitchen of a neighbour in the attic (Inger Teien) who finds her a flat. Leni's frightened by everything in the world, and there's a misunderstanding with the owner (Nicholas Hope) of the film's title restaurant Lønsj.

Director Eva Sørhaug's powerful, funny and gentle study of extreme human manipulation is made up of the awful games people play repetitively to achieve the upper hand in the sad cruel components of the day. Writer Per Schreiner's glorious script - subtitled skilfully by Nick Norris - leaves no foible of human mind-games unexplored. The film is divided into humorously-titled chapters - '5 - Something Almost Unexpected Occurs' - and all the characters, in their separate lives, intersect. All except the first to be seen. The film starts with an episode labelled 'Prologue', which has no apparent plot connection with the story that follows. A car runs over a man (Roy Jensen) in the early morning. Marius (Nicolai Cleve Broch) is driving, Turid (Birgitte Victoria Svendsen) is his employee and passenger. They start a calm conversation in which he wants her to say she was driving so that he keeps his licence - they've both been drinking. She doesn't want to. They tussle, quietly, verbally, manipulatively. He wins. The realisation comes that it's not the characters or the incident that links to the main film - it is how they deal with each other, the techniques of their conflict.

There's a fine soundtrack, including original music by Bugge Wesseltoft which starts over the credits in a variation of Bach's Air On A G String on piano, and there's a suberb ending title sequence using Annie Lennox (Eurythmics)'s I Saved The World Today. All the details of the film are perfectly-considered. Film work by cinematographer John Andreas Andersen is crisp and evocative; editing by Sophie Hesselberg, Wibecke Rønseth and co-editor Christian Siebenherz(co-editor) taut and exact. Art director Siri Langdalen, set decorators Paul André Fuller and Dagfinn Kleppan, and costume designer Karen Fabritius Gram catch exactly the mood of each person and location. There's the studenty kitchen in Bjørn Olaf's flat; the plasterless, floor-finish-less basement utility room; the brown-walled sofa-filled 1930s interior of the flat of Christer's father Gunnar Ingar Helge Gimle; the minimalist perfection of Heidi and Odd's flat; the unpuritanical red and turquoise bikinis which Leni chooses to choose between.

Lønsj sways between the extremely sinister - swirling gulls bring sudden menace (and a hilarious ending to a child, in the worst possible taste) - to the stunningly gentle. The realisation - alone, it seems - by the gay restaurant owner that Leni is autistic (or Aspergers Syndrome) and completely terrified, and his practical solution for her future is understated, and so sweet that it brings a tear to the eye. Odd's horrific buggery of Heidi shocks. His relentless cruelty to her interspersed with tenderness to his son and to her, and her manipulative self-criticism form perhaps the most tragic relationship in the story - seriously disturbing. Christer's continual attempts to be noticed by anyone, to be of consequence to anyone, to borrow money, and his selfishness, have an awful ring of truth - but the whole film has that. It is also very, very, very funny - in ways that may bring tears of shame with the laughter, but uncontrollable laughter nevertheless.

The poignancy of Leni's situation - the explanation of what looks like her odd detachment at first gradually becoming headline-clear, all by sensitive scripting and superb minimalist gestures and looks - is gently evoked by Ane Dahl Torp in the film's stand-out performance. Rightly, her character has the opening and closing scenes of the main story, and the closing sequence and song feel exactly apt. A joy of the film's progression is the knowledge that Leni will be all right by herself, has found a way of living in the world, and achieved some delight, and peace.

CAST (alpha order): Nicolai Cleve Broch - Marius. Maria Dal - Maren 7 years old. Celine Engebrigtsen - Margret. Hektor Faldbakken-Sørhaug - Baby in Back Seat. Bjørn Floberg - Kildahl. Reidar Fossum - Waiter 3. Ingar Helge Gimle - Gunnar. Mona Grenne - Waiter 1. Charlotte Grundt - Storekeeper. Pål Sverre Valheim Hagen - Janitor. Aksel Hennie - Christer. Nicholas Hope - Restaurant Owner. Knut Husebø - Farsethås. Roy Jensen - Traffic Victim. Anneke von der Lippe - Karin. Hilde Olaussen - Gro. Jan Gunnar Røise - Erlend. Ola Røneid - Waiter2. Elin Sogn - Customer. Pål Stokka - Bjørn Olaf. Birgitte Victoria Svendsen - Turid. Kyrre Haugen Sydness - Odd. Inger Teien - Woman in Attic. Pia Tjelta - Heidi. Ane Dahl Torp - Leni. Credits source – www.imdb.com (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1105734/) at 2 October 08.

COMPANY: Director - Eva Sørhaug. Writer - Per Schreiner. Co-Producer - Aagot Skjeldal. Executive Producer - Marius Holst. Executive Producer - Karin Julsrud. Executive Producer - Turid Øversveen. Executive Producer - Pål Sletaune. Line Producer - Carina Brattvik. Producer - Håkon Øverås. Original Music by - Bugge Wesseltoft. Cinematographer - John Andreas Andersen. Film Editors - Sophie Hesselberg, Wibecke Rønseth; Christian Siebenherz (co-editor). Casting by - Jannecke Bervel. Art Director - Siri Langdalen. Set Decorators - Paul André Fuller, Dagfinn Kleppan. Costume Designer - Karen Fabritius Gram. Makeup Designer - Veslemøy Fosse Ree. Assistant Makeup Artist - Ingvild Skorpe Hornseth. Production Manager - Tessa Eggesbø. Assistant Production Manager - Kristine Ingvaldsen. Assistant Unit Manager - Linn Kirkenær. Third Assistant Director - Victoria Hayes. Second Unit Director - Andreas Rønning. First Assistant Director - Erik Settemsdal. Second Second Assistant Director - Anders Søndersrød. Property Master - Stein Bjørgo. Assistant Property Master - Øyvind Brunsell. Carpenter - Tord Moberg. Set Dresser - Sunniva Rostad. Sound Recordist - Peter Clausen. Sound Editors - Bent Erik Holm, Stig Holte. Boom Operator - Geir Hoseth. Sound Designer - Tormod Ringnes. Supervising Sound Editor - Tormod Ringnes. Foley Artist - Erik S Watland. Special Effects Supervisor - Pål Morten Hverven. Digital Effects Artist - Torgeir Busch. Digital Effects Artist - Ivar Dyrstad. Visual Effects Coordinator - Camilla Fossen. Digital Compositor - Aksel Jermestad. On-line Editor - Espen Skjørdal. Visual Effects Supervisor - Martin Thorkildsen. Stunt Performer - Gunnar Brøntveit. Stunt Coordinator - Seth Ericson. Stunt Performer - Thea Danielsen Fjørtoft. Stunt Driver - Pål Morten Hverven. Stunt Performer - Kai Kolstad Rødseth. Stunt Performer - Tyrone C Wiggins. First Assistant Camera - Eirik Holst Aagård. Still Photographer - John Andreas Andersen. Lighting Assistant - Tom Balgaard. Key Grip - Anders Eide. Nature Photographer - Asgeir Helgestad. Electrician - Jon Arne Jørgensen. Lighting Technician - Rune Kalgraff. Behind Scenes Camera Operator - Tomas Løkke-Sørensen. Gaffer - Nicholas Messel. Second Assistant Camera - Jens J Patterson. Second Camera Unit - Jens Ramborg. Grip - Petter Sørnæs. Nature Photographer - Jørn Stenersen. Casting Assistant - Mia Jensen. Costumes - Karen Fabritius Gram. Set Costumer - Camilla Lindblom. Musician - Berit Caradas. Musician - Emery Caradas. Musician - Dorthe Dreier. Musician - Alison Read. Musician - Marius Reksjø. Location Scout Manager - Jørgen Stangebye Larsen. Subtitles - Nick Norris. Production Companies - Spillefilmkompaniet, 4 1/2. Distributors - Nordisk Filmdistribusjon (Norway theatrical). Post-Production - The Chimneypot. Talent Agency - Hobbart & Hobbart. International Sales - Nordisk Film International Sales. Post-Production Facilities - Nordisk Film Post Production. Camera Equipment - Norsk Filmstudio. Also Known As - Cold Lunch; (International: English title). Runtime - 90 minutes. Country - Norway. Language - Norwegian. Colour - Colour. Aspect Ratio - 2.35:1. Sound Mix - Dolby Digital. Filming Locations - Oslo, Norway. Release Dates - 1 February 2008 (Norway); August 2008 (Italy, Venice Film Festival); 6 September 2008 (Canada, Toronto Film Festival);25 September 2008 (Iceland; Reykjavik International Film Festival); 24 October 2008 (UK, London Film Festival). Credits source – www.imdb.com (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1105734/) at 2 October 08.

END

John Park

reviewed Wednesday 2 October 08 / press screening / NFT1, National Film Theatre, London

Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2012

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