Johan’s childhood – Weekend – Kommersant
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A film adaptation by the Norwegian writer Erlend Lu, who is well known to the domestic reader, is being released in Russian distribution. This comedy about a strange wartime child who managed to grow into a crazy boomer is a rare actual guest on our screens, which today are filled with classics of various stripes.
When Johan was little, his communist parents blew up bridges – in the name of victory, so that the German Nazi would not get through. It was 1943, and it was in the Norwegian village of Titran, on the very edge of the earth, by the cold blue sea. It was fun to blow up, and the Grande family, to whose younger generation the unintelligent Johan belonged, devoted themselves to this dangerous business with soul: while other Norwegian Resistance fighters were only planning an action and waiting for weeks for an order from distant London, the Grande spouses twisted the fuse and pressed on the detonator. Determination and political views, of course, did not add to their popularity in the local community – marginals are not liked anywhere, and pre-war Norway, wrapped in warm sweaters with multi-colored patterns, was even stricter than other countries. After the war, Johan’s parents took up a no less dangerous business – demining the water area. So a stupid ship mine made the boy an orphan. However, this did not bring him the love of the inhabitants of Titran. Unsociable, obsessed with dynamite, Johan grew up with his uncle and aunt at the nearest lighthouse, nurturing two passions in himself besides sapper art. On the one hand, love for the neighbor girl Solvor (she told him that kissing is like eating almond cake), and on the other hand, for pulling up on the horizontal bar (thanks to which Johan became strong like Thor, and just as unstoppable).
The story of Johan Grande, whom everyone hates, belongs to the pen of the famous Norwegian writer Erlend Lu. Even those who miss the corresponding line in the film’s credits will recognize his usual way of combining a silly anecdote and high tragedy, introducing a postmodern intonation into a sentimental essay: here is a creepy trio sneaking up the rocks in wool sweaters and knitted hats, but before you have time to chuckle at how they dressed up like an explosion and it’s time to cry. Life according to Erlend Lou runs swiftly, like the flicker of a Fickford cord; the most important skill in the human arsenal is the ability to choose the right moment – on the one hand, you need to have patience to wait for explosive happiness, and on the other hand, be able to part with unrealizable hopes in time so that nothing important is torn off. This happened to Johan’s girlfriend Solvor, who was crippled by another bomb of the Grande family. Wait, but do not stand in the way of high feelings, know how to blow up and burn bridges, but do not forget to get off them in time. Alas, no one has been able to do it yet. At least in this film there is not a single total lucky person.
“Everybody Hates Johan” takes 70 years from the life of the main character – in some ways the film resembles the Norwegian version of “Forrest Gump”. A tall, oddly bearded man, Johan is unsuccessfully trying to cope with his life, but life, despite the conviction of the American hero Robert Zemeckis, is not a box of chocolates at all, rather a box of dynamite sticks. And Europe does not like noise. So, having involuntarily crippled his girlfriend, the bomber hero leaves for America, where “everything is so loved to blow up” to work in the construction sector. Echoes of Forrest Gump can also be seen in subsequent events, when, returning to his homeland, Johan meets the Vietnamese immigrant Pei (did she run away from the American colonialists?). When Johan accidentally blows up a worthless postman and goes to jail, you are finally convinced that life is not sugar. By God, sometimes it seems that the twists and turns in the fate of Johan would be enough for a whole series. By the way, it could well be removed by the same director who directed the film. Most of the work of director Hallvar Vitso is serial production. Each oddity of Johan, for which he is supposedly “hated” by the locals, could be worthy of a separate episode.
Despite the apparent unbridledness and lack of political correctness, hatred, fear and rejection of others are predictably the main object of criticism in the film. The giant and strong man Johan even without dynamite in his hands looks anxious – that’s why he is “cancelled” by the whole village. In the same way, the foreigner Pei, with whom the hero converges, is ostracized. Explosion-damaged childhood love Johana Solvor struggles to overcome her self-hatred. But is it possible to oppose something to these black feelings, except for phenomenal patience? It is clear that progress is inexorable. While the calendar is turning, there is hope. But what if there is not enough exposure? Here the authors – Erlend Lou and Hallvar Vitso – give extremely simple advice: marginals should take a closer look at each other. Hold hands and don’t fall apart.
In theaters from 25 August
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