AFI Fest Report: Vinterkyss (Kissed By Winter) Review

Once again, here is Peter Martin checking in from AFI with a look at Norway's submission to the Best Foreign Film Oscar race.

-------------------------------------

What could be more agonizing for a parent than to lose a child? After her son suddenly collapses and dies on an ice rink, Victoria (Annika Hallin) leaves her husband and moves to a rural village, hoping to start over again.

Still bombarded with memories of her previous family life, she presses forward as a country doctor in snowy surroundings. The wintry backgrounds enfold Victoria, who seems as emotionally cold as the weather, until Kai (Kristoffer Joner) seeks her assistance: he's under investigation for the death of a young man crushed by the snow plow he was driving.

Attracted to Kai -- it gets lonely in the woods at night -- Victoria starts her own investigation. When she learns that the young man's parents may be in some way responsible, she begins badgering the local police chief on Kai's behalf. Really, though, Victoria is trying to absolve herself of the guilt she feels for her own son's death.

Annika Hallin is subtly, stunnningly effective as Victoria, a broken woman held together more by routine than will. It's too bad that the script by Stale Stein Berg and debut director Sara Johnsen ultimately fails to satisfy -- we're provided only a superficial explanation for Victoria's guilt, without any hint at the darker mysteries that surely lie at the heart of her conduct.

But it's a rare film that builds to such a gentle, nakedly emotional scene as this one. And Johnsen should trust her instinct for dreamy visuals -- the final images manage the difficult trick of softly landing punches to the gut.

KISSED BY WINTER is Norway's official submission for Best Foreign Language Film. More information is available at the Norwegian Film Institute's web site.

It does not yet have U.S. distribution. It will have its U.S. Premiere at AFI FEST on Friday, November 11 at 6:45 p.m. and will also play on Saturday, November 12, at 3:15 p.m.

Ticket information is available at the AFI FEST web site.

Review by Peter Martin