REVIEW: JUNK MAIL/BUDBRINGEREN (1997)
Written by: Johnny Halberg and Pal Sletaurine Directed by: Pal Sletaurine Produced by: Petter Boe and Dag Nordahl Actors: Robert Skaerstad, Andrine Saether, Per Egil Aske
There are two kinds of movies that are easy to do, but very hard to do well -- romance and comedy. Movie audience are given weekly doses of unfunny, contrived and ugly comedies from the movie-making industry. I do not remember the last time I laughed so hard *after* I saw a comedy upon merely the thoughts of some scenes. This time, the success in this difficult genre is the small Norwegian film "Junk Mail," made by the first-time director Pal Sletaurine. Even now, as I recall some of the details of this film, I cannot help laughing.
One would certainly have a hard time finding a more unlikely hero than that in "Junk Mail." His name is Roy Amundsen (played by Robert Skaerstad), a total and complete loser with little redeming merit. He is a bored mailman who would throw away mail and open letters on the job when he feels like it. He lives in a shabby and dirty (as dirtiness can be) little apartment in a part of the city not unlike the worst part of downtown LA. He eats out of canned food and does not seem to wash the pile of dishes left in the sink for weeks. The last time he washed his clothes or himself might well be years ago. "What are you good at?" joke his coworkers in the cafeteria while he responds with embarrassed silence. "Walking" was all his female coworker can come up with.
A coincidence leads him to Line (played by Andrine Saether), a good-looking deaf girl to whom Roy becomes attracted. She makes the mistake of leaving her keys in the mailbox, so he gains access to her apartment, and accidentally saves her life when she attempts suicide. Soon enough he becomes involved in her life as well as a mess of crimes and some stolen money. As clueless as he is, he somehow manages to defeat Line's violent and psychopathic boyfriend Georg (Per Egil Aske), who does not appear to be much more intelligent than Roy.
As pathetic and unattractive as Roy is, somehow we tolarate him as the protagonist of the movie, because there is a boyish innocence about him. His actions may not be heroic, but are by no means mean-spirited or malicious. He is only trying to do whatever his feeble judgment can come up with, like a boy ill-equipped with the wisdom to deal with life situations. In the mean time, it's not like he is surrounded by smart people either. His coworkers, bosses and everyone around him are no Einstein to say the least. It certainly shatters our false impression that there are no idiots or losers in Norway. The movie succeeds in maintaining Roy's personality and capability throughout without letting a word of remote intelligence pass through his lips. Robert Skaerstad gave a very effective performance as a loser stumble through a series of adventures with limited resources. And much to our amazement, we do gradually feel like rooting for him after a while. The other supporting actors are quite good too, with numerous hilarious moments.
The plot twists seem rough and not very well-thought, and the whole crime business and where the money came from are never really explained. However, the jokes are so effective and within characters that we laugh nevertheless. It is not an ambitious project, nor is it trying to preach anything. The characters are original and amusing. I thoroughly enjoy it for its off-beat and unexpected humor. Many critics call it dark or brooding. I just didn't see it, but find it rather cute and sweet in a very strange way. It is difficult to many people laugh and even harder to make them laugh still hours later after they see it. This movie does it effortlessly.
Grade: B.
jun
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