O’ Horten (2007)
79%RT Audience Score: 63%
Awards & Nominations: 8 wins & 18 nominations
Bent Hamer’s latest is a droll, deadpan comedy filled with strange touches and melancholy charm
If you’re looking for a quirky, offbeat film that will make you laugh and think, O’Horten is the perfect choice. With deadpan humor and a charmingly minimalist style, this Norwegian comedy is a true gem. Baard Owe gives a standout performance as the title character, and the film’s exploration of aging, adventure, and uncertainty is both poignant and hilarious. Whether you’re a fan of Jacques Tati or Buster Keaton, or just looking for something a little different, O’Horten is a must-see.
Production Company(ies)
Société Nouvelle Pathé Cinéma
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for brief nudity
Year of Release
2007
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby SR Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 29m
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Language(s):Norwegian
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): May 22, 2009 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 22, 2009
Genre(s)
Comedy/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Baard Owe, Espen Skjonberg, Henny Moan, Bjørn Floberg, Kai Remlov, Per Jansen, directed by Bent Hamer, written by Bent Hamer, Comedy, Drama, PG-13, reviewed by Keith Uhlich, J P Mangalindan, Roger Moore, Jonathan F Richards, Marc Savlov, Lisa Kennedy, Dan DiNicola, Martin Tsai, Mike Edwards, Aaron Hillis, James Plath, Box Office $301.9K, Budget unknown, produced by Bent Hamer, Sony Pictures Classics, Dolby Digital, Norwegian, retirement, train engineer, melancholy, strange encounters, elderly stranger, new life, age, adventure, uncertainty, humanity, minimalist masterpiece, deadpan comedy, strange touches, quirky, beguiling, very funny, off-center dignity, Jacques Tati, Buster Keaton, landscape as a character, gender equality, ski jumping, Norway, winter, slow-paced, gentle solitary lives, life after 67
Worldwide gross: $1,791,937
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $2,567,071
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,347
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 279,942
US/Canada gross: $302,232
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $432,968
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,362
US/Canada opening weekend: $24,938
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $35,725
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,313
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Espen Skjonberg – Trygve Sissener
Henny Moan – Svea
Bjørn Floberg – Flo
Kai Remlov – Steiner Sissener
Per Jansen – Lokfører
Director(s)
Bent Hamer
Writer(s)
Bent Hamer
Producer(s)
Bent Hamer
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
8 wins & 18 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (86) | Top Critics (40) | Fresh (78) | Rotten (8)
Cinema as a mass-manufactured snow globe.
November 16, 2011 | Rating: 2/6
Keith Uhlich
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
September 14, 2010 | Rating: 3/4
J. P. Mangalindan
Globe and Mail
TOP CRITIC
It’s a film whose pleasures come slowly, as we, like the title character, discover the joys he’s missed. Best of all, we, like Odd the Norwegian bachelor, figure out it is never too late to start living.
September 23, 2009 | Rating: 4/5
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Hamer creates a quirky, beguiling, and very funny mood piece that reflects on age, adventure, uncertainty, and humanity. Owe gives the character of Horten an off-center dignity that will suggest comparisons to Jacques Tati and Buster Keaton
August 23, 2009
Jonathan F. Richards
Film.com
TOP CRITIC
A spare and perfectly droll kinda-sorta comedy.
August 7, 2009 | Rating: 3.5/5
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
The whimsy is never overplayed. The peculiar isn’t teased at any character’s expense.
July 24, 2009 | Rating: 3/4
Lisa Kennedy
Denver Post
TOP CRITIC
In years to come, I would not be surprised if this droll Norwegian comedy is hailed as a minimalist masterpiece.
February 3, 2018
Dan DiNicola
The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
“O’Horten” only really works when Odd encounters the assorted oddballs; elsewhere the film travels a bit too light.
October 7, 2015
Martin Tsai
Critic’s Notebook
It entertains from start to finish and tells a story that is not just fun but in its inimitably gentle way has something to teach us all as well.
March 1, 2011 | Rating: 3.5/5
Mike Edwards
What Culture
If you can settle into [Baard Owe’s] playful deadpan rhythms, a bittersweetly funny, existential mystery — or call it a modest adventure, if that’s not too oxymoronic — awaits.
November 17, 2009 | Rating: 7/10
Aaron Hillis
GreenCine
O’Horten won’t be for everyone, but if you enjoy character-driven films that also treat the landscape as a character, this one has a certain charm and appeal.
October 13, 2009 | Rating: 7/10
James Plath
Movie Metropolis
O’ Horten moves slowly, sometimes excruciatingly so, but its thematic center is strong: How do you run out the clock of life?
September 18, 2009 | Rating: 4/4
Justin Strout
Orlando Weekly…
Plot
After being forced to retire from his job as a train engineer, 67-year-old Odd Horten struggles to adjust to his new life until a series of strange encounters lead him to try something new with the help of an elderly stranger.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
NA
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