Why you can trust 12DOVE
Coming on like Mike Leigh on a Dogme trip, Swedish director Lukas Moodysson's follow-up to Show Me Love is the smartest kind of feelgood, fish-out-of-water comedy. Set in a '70s hippie commune, it sifts through the free love and lentils to tell a tale of ideals tussling with a mess of reality.
When strait-laced Elisabeth (Lisa Lindgren) leaves her abusive husband, Rolf (Michael Nyqvist), and moves into the home with her children, all kinds of disruptions follow, not least over the fractious issue of Coca Cola. But the film's no easy satire on funny hair and flares. Rather than aiming for cheap laughs, Moodysson explores what keeps these people together despite the day-to-day truths - desire, dirty pots - that divide them.
Respecting their idealism as much as he respects their flawed humanity, Moodysson delivers a warmly acted, deliciously tender comedy of human foibles. Even the Abba tunes sound good in here.
The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.
The Inside Out 2 panic attack scene is one of the best depictions of anxiety ever – and something Pixar director Kelsey Mann is incredibly proud of: "I couldn't be happier"
When making Kingdom Hearts, the "one thing" RPG icon Tetsuya Nomura "wasn't willing to budge on" was a non-Disney protagonist
The Witcher fans in shambles after a new book reveals just how old Geralt really is