Now Streaming: STAYER, Evasive Even Elstad Has a Daughter

Rock on! Oh, er ... what about your daughter?

Stayer
The first two episodes start streaming Thursday, January 15, exclusively on Viaplay, in the U.S., via Amazon's page and, in Canada, via Rogers East. Two subsequent episodes will debut every Thursday, throughout the month.

In the words of this site's founder, Todd Brown Aksel Hennie is "one of the finest actors of his generation." And that was in 2010!

The film Todd was anticipating was Morten Tyldum's Headhunters (2011), which, of course, was an amazing film, featuring an amazing performance by Aksel Hennie, who has continued to blaze his way through movies like Pioneer (2013), The Martian (2015), The Trip (2021), and Sisu (2022). Before all that, though, the film that first caught our beloved Todd's attention was Hennie's gritty drama UNO (2004), which he also wrote and directed.

In Stayer, Axel Hennie returns behind the camera, while also starring as Even Elstad, the leader of a Norwegian band that has seen its audience slowly diminish in the years since their #1 single, "Wildcat" defined their careers. They are still widely known -- Even is constantly stopped for selfies -- yet Even has grown increasingly aggravated by their audience's persistent demand to hear their big hit, and only their big hit, no matter their efforts to play new songs.

As Even is dealing with audience expectations, his 16-year-old daughter Annie (Hannah Elise Adolfsen Fjeldbraaten) is perfectly fine without him. She is very close to her mother, whom she adores. They laugh together, play games together, make fun of each other, and could never imagine life without the other.

One horrible day, everything changes.

Throughout all six episodes of the first season -- season 2 is coming to Viaplay in a couple months -- Even and Annie must come to terms with their fractured relationship. In his younger years, Even left his wife and daughter behind, so that he pursue his career. With the passage of years, he is struggling, and it shows in his behaviour.

His increasing impatience with others is clearly a result of his own frustrations with where things stand. His band is still able to play in mid-size concert halls, but we all know how that will end up. Without new hits, bands continue diminishing in popularity.

Having to interact with Annie forces Even to confront unresolved feelings that he has kept hidden away. Axel Hennie is such a magnetic actor that he makes Even a magnetic performer on stage; it's like every step he takes is tinged with dynamite, waiting to explode.

As a director, he begins the first episode by following Even as he moves from the backstage area through a circuitous route to the stage, when he takes the microphone and commands rapturous attention as he sings. It's completely authentic and believable, which makes sense, since he is a musician and has contributed songs to several recent projects.

The real surprise here is Hannah Elise Adolfsen Fjeldbraaten. She easily conveys a teenager's easygoing, joyful relationship with her mother, as well as her reserved presence at high school, and her antagonistic relationship with her father. She's able to heat up and cool down, registering a range of emotions with her facial expressions and body language.

In contrast to the family-unit challenges that Even and Annie face, Even's older brother Petter (Jeppe Beck Laursen) and his wife Monica (Marian Saastad Ottesen) appear to have it all: Petter is headmaster at the high school where their daughter attends with Annie, and they also have a teenage son. All seems to be well financially and otherwise, but cracks in the relationship between Petter and Monica have begun opening big fissures, and each of their children, especially the older one, have their own divisive issues.

With this contrast in mind, Stayer also raises the less-obvious issue: if Even had stuck around and stayed for his wife and daughter, would things be any better? Or worse? The show is thoughtfully handled and dynamically staged -- the declining rock star side of things as well as the sparring between Even and Annie, and between Petter and Monica -- which makes Season 2 sound even more inviting.

Summing up: Highly recommended. Season 1 features terrific performances and high family and relationship drama to go along with the specific, music world atmospherics.

Now Streaming celebrates independent and international genre films and television shows that are newly available on legal streaming services.