Polite, good-natured, and useful – that is exactly what we wish to be, and Norwegian filmmaker Sødahl cuts open the mechanisms of society’s good faith. She is familiar to RIGA IFF audiences – the festival screened her Oscar-shortlisted marital drama Hope (2019). In her latest piece, spinning a “everything will be fine, darling” premise, Sødahl leads us into territory that comfort lovers and those allergic to conflict would rather avoid.

Mikkel and Louise have finally gone on holiday with their daughters. An all-inclusive hotel soothes their longing for a peaceful oasis. One carefree day, they accidentally run over a man, and after sorting out the situation and visiting the hospital, the two parties go their separate ways. But the injured man returns, asking for help, and the family – aware of their moral entrapment and wishing to not be “bad people” – responds. It soon becomes clear that the desire to do good goes hand in hand with intentions that are not exactly good…

It would not be an overstatement to say that Sødahl’s film begins where Guadagnino’s brilliant thriller A Bigger Splash (2015) left off: a migrant crisis in the cradle of Europe and onlookers who want to do good. The most fascinating about Sødahl’s latest piece – the Best Nordic Film winner at the Gothenburg Film Festival – is its psychological subtlety and its tightly knit structure that alternates with claustrophobic directness and plays upon double standards. The values of the characters – played by the brilliant Danica Ćurčić and Esben Smed – are put to the test: how far are they willing to go to be good people?