Sex

2024 [NORWEGIAN]

Action / Drama / Romance

9
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Certified Fresh 86% · 28 reviews
IMDb Rating 6.6/10 10 2307 2.3K

lgbt oslo, norway gay interest gay theme male nudity gay couple

Plot summary

Two married, heterosexual chimney sweeps face experiences that unsettle their views on sexuality and identity. One has a same-sex encounter without considering it either as an expression of homosexuality or infidelity. The other finds himself in dreams where he is seen as a woman.

Director

Dag Johan Haugerud Photo
Dag Johan Haugerud

Top cast

Jan Gunnar Røise Photo
Jan Gunnar Røise as Feier
Thorbjørn Harr Photo
Thorbjørn Harr as Avdelingsleder
Anne Marie Ottersen Photo
Anne Marie Ottersen as Lege
Nasrin Khusrawi Photo
Nasrin Khusrawi as Sangpedagog
720p.WEB 1080p.WEB
1.08 GB
1280*536
Norwegian 2.0
NR
Subtitles us   no  
25 fps
2 hr 0 min
Seeds 5
2.22 GB
1920*804
Norwegian 5.1
NR
Subtitles us   no  
25 fps
2 hr 0 min
Seeds 38

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by frankde-jong 6 / 10

A film in which the best moments have nothing to do with the real theme can't be real good

Norwegian films are on the rise. Years ago the only Norwegian film I knew of was "Insomnia" (1997, Erik Skjoldbjaerg) and most people would probably only know that this is the original of the remake of Christopher Nolan from 2002. After that Joachim Trier broke through (" The worst person in the world", 2021) and this year I saw "Quisling, the final days" (2024, Erik Poppe) only to discover that this director was far from a debutant but already active since 1998.My newest Norwegian discovery is Dag Johan Haugerud. Recently he has made a trilogy called the Oslo trilogy. An ambitious project first because Joachim Trier also made an Oslo trilogy and second because he revealed that his inspiration has been the three colors trilogy of Kieslowski, pumping up expectations (at least with me).The trilogy consists of the films "Sex", "Love" and "Dreams", all released in 2024."Sex" was the first film I saw. It is about two heterosexual men (two collegues as they are both chimney sweepers) whose masculinity is put into question by a recent event. One has had a "one day stand" with a male customer and the other has recurring dreams about David Bowie flirting with him as with a female.Most of the film consists of dialogue in which the two men discuss their experiences with each other and with their spouses.Remarkable is that the men themselves have less problems with what could be interpreted as an inroad on their masculinity than at least one of the spouses.The film depends very much on dialogue and much of this dialogue is of a heavy psychological nature. Maybe not a surprise by a director who is also a novelist.Although it speaks for the film that it has the courage to row against the current anti woke "zeitgeist", the heavy dialogue made the film very slow in my opinion. It never really gets into gear.This is also illustrated by the fact that scenes outside the real theme were for me the highlights of the film.Regularly the film shows images of Oslo, as a sort of Ozu like in between shots. I found these images very beautiful. Beautiful also was the image of the two chimney sweepers having a discussion on the roof of a building. This image was rightly selected for the poster.Secondly a son of one of the men was in my opinion a very comical relief. Especially the discussions he has with his father about starting a you tube channel and with a doctor about the mestruation pain of one of his class mates.All in all a film in which the best moments have nothing to do with the real theme can't be real good. Nevertheless I still plan to watch the entire trilogy. After all "Sex" is the lowest rated film of the three.
Reviewed by jkpaddick 10 / 10

Like nothing Ive ever seen before

This Norwegian drama offers an intimate portrait of 2 middle aged chimney sweeps grappling with questions of identity, gender and sexuality.One, despite being married has decides on a whim to have casual sex with a man, and the other struggles with self identity after dreaming about David Bowie looking at him like he is a womanThe thing that makes this film completely unique is the characterisation and tone. Every conversation, whether between the protagonists and their wives, doctors, or children, unfolds with complete frankness and openness without ego or shame, instead each person offering their own perspectives while genuinely attempting to understand each other and work through their emotions and disagreements. Its honestly refreshing and an almost utopian view of what humanity and human relationships could beI cannot say I have ever seen a film before that shows meaningful character development without relying on melodrama or external conflict and the film explores themes like self identity, relationships, trust, masculinity so thoughtfully I was thinking about it for days, exactly the kind of thing I go to film festivals for.
Reviewed by JonasT-10 10 / 10

Smart and tight

A chamber master piece on the seldom thoroughly explored themes of heterosexual fear of homosexuality and the deeper meanings of desire and cheating. Maybe not for the American audience but for anyone who thinks of the different parameters of love, relationships, desire, sex, fidelity and how the converge and not. Beautifully shot and cast, congenial soundtrack. Truly a gem, giving the Norwegian film industry a needed 10 out of 10 which rarely or never happens. Sometimes balancing on the edge of being didactic and morally supervising, but the charming low key saves the film and in the end you're just swept away by the simple message conveyed by truly star actors and a director who knows exactly what he he is doing. Respect!
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