Happy, Happy (2010) User Reviews

Very Norwegian

[Kalle_it · 7/10 · 11 April 2011]

The original title "Sykt lykkelig" is a nice pun, as "sykt" can be both positive (thus the title meaning "incredibly happy") or negative (more like "happy in a sick way").

Indeed this dichotomy runs throughout the movie. Two couples live next door, but their initial attempt to establish a good neighbourhood relationship goes awry, as neither family is as picture-perfect as the facade suggests.

Soon enough they find themselves in the middle of an awkward love triangle, almost turning into a double-triangle, and then shortly into partner swapping.

In the end the ordeal brings every character back to square one, but with renewed, and this time hopefully complete, awareness of themselves and of their partner. So everything looks the same as before, but something has definitely changed.

We're left to wonder who was "happy" and about what and when... And is it supposed to be ironic? I'm not really sure, and it's a positive thing. A movie that keeps me thinking after it's over, with no convoluted gimmicks and with no clean-cut answers is a good movie to me.

Sykt lykkelig is a difficult movie to categorize... In a way it's the typical Norwegian "comedy": more awkward than funny, with a persistent serious vibe that runs through the movie but never takes over. So the movie is always enjoyable, even when it could get too heavy-handed, gloomy or sappy. Of course this minimalistic approach can be a negative aspect, depending on the viewer's taste and on his penchant for full-fledged drama or for unrelenting pretentiousness.

Just to make two examples: the subplot involving the two kids, with openly racist undertones, is quite perplexing but it's an odd change of pace from the main story.

And the confrontation scene between Kaja and Eirik about his "hunting trips" is a farcical tribute to Brokeback Mountain... In order not to talk openly about the topic in front of the kid they switch to a very broken German, which doesn't sound too different from Norwegian, and the key word of the whole scene is still said loud in Norwegian... So much for not upsetting the kid! If it was intentional, it was hilarious.

To sum it up "Sykt lykkelig" is a somewhat odd and uneven family "comedrama", Its forte is the absence of maudlin introspection. For once we're just watching the four characters deal with their live and their choices. No preachy message is spoon-fed to us, no easy answers are given... Quite a rare occurrence in such movies.

Infidelity begets tolerance and eventually truth...comic and sad

[secondtake · 7/10 · 13 December 2013]

Happy, Happy (2011)

This is a modest film, for sure, and if you take the basic element of it, it's a story told many times. But it's told very well, and it has two extra layers that give it a really odd, pointed humor and pathos (both). You might reduce it all by saying: how Scandinavian. Maybe.

Most of the plot is simple. A sophisticated city couple move to the country to live for awhile. (We are never sure why, and they don't work, but it's more than just a holiday.) The wife (played by the chiseled Danish t.v. actress Maibritt Saerens) is reluctant in the opening scene, but the ground is covered with snow and it seems like a necessary adventure.

They rent a little house from a country couple who live next door, and the most famous star of the movie is this woman, a simple and idealistic kind of woman (Agnes Kittelsen). She must be the reason for the movie, because she is naive to the point of blindness to her situation (or so we are led to think). Her husband is a slightly abusive guy who gets their son on his side in affairs.

The city couple/country couple dynamic is nothing new, and it has some of the familiar expected results, including a genuine mutual admiration between the two women (one appreciating country life, the other admiring urban chic). But a rivalry also is brewing, and some infidelity results. With the nice new complication of a gay element, which I will leave vague and simply say that it happens in a very natural and almost normal way.

This is all pretty good stuff, and the making of a simple but satisfying human drama. The two additional layers change the tone of it all. The first is almost silly you would think, but in little inserts, artificially and comically positioned as markers, is a kind of Greek chorus—played by a Scandinavian barbershop quartet in English. It's hilarious and surreal. And it makes you reflect on the events as theater, not quite as a depiction of real people.

The other layer is tougher to take, and is given brief but critical screen time. The country couple has a boy of their own, and the city couple has an adopted Ethiopian child about the same age. In an apparently innocent way, the white child plays slave master to the black child, who plays slave (willingly, and with no serious physical harm). The dynamic is chilling to a viewer, and only slowly do the parents catch on (partly because they are all absorbed in their own drama). There is a terrific five second resolution to this near the end, by the city woman, and as cruel and crude as it seems, it's perfect and necessary. And it cuts through all the other crap, somehow, too.

By the end you see a kind of fable played out, and it might be a bit simple, but it's sweet and sad and funny enough to work. I liked this more than I thought I would at first.

Tragical and awkward black comedy

[OJT · 7/10 · 2 January 2011]

Sykt Lykkelig (in English translated to "Happy Happy") is a black comedy where a couple with an adopted kid move to a very rural part of Norway in the winter, after a decision from the husband. She has had an affair. They are overly welcomed by the main character Kaja, which is helplessly stupid when it comes to deal with her own problems, having been a girl with a troubled parent-less background. That seems also to be the reason she has married a high school boyfriend which obviously is the wrong match for her. These two couples, living in two neighboring houses soon is to ruin what is left to mess up in the new relationships.

"Sykt lykkelig" is the debut of director Anne Sewitsky, well played by all actors. The film is chosen to attend Sundance Festival 2011, where it's likely to get praise due to it's oddness. It resembles some of the awkward moments in Sundance-acclaimed Little Miss Sunshine, though this film has less charm and is a much blacker comedy.

A lot of comedy's love to give you awkward moments, though they often tend to be severely over-done. In Sykt Lykkelig the awkward moments pile up so that you hate it, while wanting to laugh. Funny? yes! But with a severe undertone. The film is light hearted, but is so often seriously meant, so it actually is a little problem for the viewer. I found myself mostly the only one laughing in the theater seeing it, in a crowd surprisingly mainly male, whilst the trailer seem to tell us this is more of a woman's movie.

The film is advertised as a comedy about adultery, cottage cheese, blow jobs and elk-meat. Not a very good tag-line, if you ask me. I, however, choose to see the film as a black comedy taking up the problems of adultery, homosexuality, racism, love, loneliness, marriage-problems as well as the lack of understanding between men and women.

A male gospel quartet gives us both the deeper thoughts, as well as giving an uplifting feeling when the characters in the movie pile up problems along the line.

Thank God this is film. In the end the film gives hope, but loses track in it's own try of giving credibility. Even though this film gives mixed feelings, I can't help see some great acting here, as well as an interesting director. It has been a difficult film to act for the six persons. A kind of understatement humor, with a very black edge, giving a need for serious touch all the way.

Sykt Lykkelig is a different film, and a film for those who'd like to be a fly on the wall, or a Peeping Tom.

Agnes Kittelsen in a breakout performance; Two couples make the mistake of comparing relationships

[chaz-28 · 7/10 · 27 September 2011]

There are four main characters in Happy, Happy because it is about two couples; however, one of them really shines through and becomes such a pleasure to watch that it really does not matter what happens with the plot or any of the other players, she is just stunning. I am talking about Agnes Kittelsen who plays Kaja. She is almost always smiling, even when there are situations when there is nothing to smile about. She exudes positive energy and cannot help it when her actions either makes someone else around her happy or rubs someone else the wrong way.

Kaja is married to Eirik (Joachim Rafaelsen) and they appear to live in the middle of nowhere Norway. They not only own their own house, but also the one next door which they rent out to people who are usually looking to get away from the city. A city couple from Denmark does exactly that when they abruptly shift from urban to rural. The new couple next door is Sigve (Henrik Rafaelsen) and Elisabeth (Maibritt Saerens). Since there is not much else to do in the immediate locale, the two couples start sharing dinners together and playing games. These games lead to uncomfortable couple comparisons which is never a good thing. Comparing your relationship to someone else's is not the way to end the evening on a high note.

During one game, it emerges that Kaja and Eirik have not had sex in over a year and that Elisabeth has recently cheated on Sigve which was a catalyst in their decision to escape to the countryside. The couples also notice the personality clashes and matches around the dinner table. Kaja and Sigve are naturally extroverted and outwardly positive. Elisabeth and Eirik are much more reserved and while not necessarily secretive, they do not have the impulse to share their feelings around the room. These situations and personalities obviously set up what may lead to adulterous liaisons, secrets, and acrimony. However, this is not a heavy handed drama about adultery and revenge. There are laughs, comedic scenes, and an overall light air around the decisions these couples make in response to one another.

Each couple also has a son, although Sigve and Elisabeth's son is adopted and black. There are scenes between the two boys, who seem to be around seven years old, which do the film no credit and do not fit. Their sequences are only peripheral to the plot and have no bearing on any central themes, which is all the more puzzling why they are even there. Their interactions disrupt the light flow and mood of the movie and should either be completely rewritten or just taken out.

Happy, Happy won the Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic World Cinema at this year's Sundance Film Festival and is also Norway's official submission for the 2012 Academy Awards. It approaches its characters with maturity and understanding, characteristics true for most Scandinavian films but frequently lacking in American ones. It is also challenging to classify Happy, Happy as just a comedy or a drama. There are not very many jokes or moments to laugh at but there are also very few emotional moments which aim for true drama either; it carves out a distinct middle ground.

I recommend Happy, Happy for those of us who like Scandinavian films and appreciate movies which take their characters seriously. Thank goodness there are no slapstick moments here which would not fit and no downright weepy 'woe is me' segments. Just lose the scenes with the kids and then you would really have a heck of film on your hands.

indie soap

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 1 October 2016]

Kaja is an unrelenting cheerful person. She's a teacher. Her husband Eirick is a jerk. For example, he and their son play a silent-treatment game which they know infuriates her. Couple Elisabeth and Sigve move in next door with their adopted African boy Noa. One night, Sigve brings out a box called The Couples Game. Kaja and Eirick have a tough time with the game. Kaja reveals to Sigve that they haven't had sex for a year. Sigve tells her that Elisabeth cheated on him. Sigve and Kaja start a secret affair.

This indie is a little bit slow at times. Kaja is a great character. The actors are all good. There is some relationship fun. Then there is one too many reveal twist with Eirick. Instead of emotional intensity, it becomes a sudsy endeavor. I can do without that final twist. The humor doesn't always work.

Happiness is an inside job

[dario_malic · 7/10 · 11 July 2012]

Norwegian movie called "Sykt lykkelig" ("Happy Happy") tells the story of two couples. Kaja and Eirik rent a house to Elisabeth and Sigve. And madness ensues. Kaja and Eirik don't have the greatest relationship. They haven't had sex for over a year, Eirik wipes his lips after kissing Kaja and prefers watching men wrestle to spending time with his wife. It pretty soon becomes clear that he is gay but isn't able to admit it to her, or to himself. In spite of it all Kaja wants to be happy and tries as much as she can. When Elisabeth and Sigve, seemingly perfect couple, arrive, it makes Kaja more happy and more miserable at the same time. But things aren't as they seem. Elisabeth cheated on Sigve and their relationship is in a crisis too. Next thing you know, practically everybody tries to hit on everybody and at the end of it all they're back at the beginning. Almost.

"Sykt lykkelig" is a movie that celebrates love and happiness. It shows us how people can connect through time in ways they didn't even thought possible and that there are bonds which can hardly be broken. Elisabeth and Sigve cheated on each other more than once but realize that no one else can give them what they have with each other. They've been through so much together that they've become more than just a husband and wife. They are each other's past and present, they know one another the way no one else can know them and they are still in love. It's different with Kaja and Eirik. Although they're connected by strong bonds as well, Eirik never loved Kaja in a romantic way, and Kaja has never been happy as she can be. Nevertheless, she tried. And that optimism and wish for happiness were rewarded, albeit in a strange way. Eirik finally admitted his sexual orientation and enabled her to seek someone who can respond to all that she has to offer.

There's also a subplot involving the sons of two pairs. Kaja and Eirik's son Theodor, and Elisabeth and Sigve's adopted son Noa. Noa is an African boy, and the subplot involves Theodor forcing him to pretend to be his slave and, however strange that may sound, boys bonding through master-slave game. I must admit I'm still not sure what's the purpose of that subplot. To me it seems useless, but maybe I'm missing the point.

All in all it's a good movie trying to show what is insurmountable and what's not, in a romantic relationship. It also shows you that no matter what, you shouldn't lose your faith in happiness. If for no other reason, you should watch it because of that.

http://onlineimpressions.blogspot.com/

A Norvegian mild low budget drama movie mixed with drops of comedy...

[hawksoul08 · 6/10 · 8 April 2011]

Very minimalistic view of scenery, an extremely low budget movie (at least it wasn't shot using a digital camera like TV movies). The actors play well, but everyone is down-toned like they are affected by the weather, and the only 2 times they show emotion is after a sex scene (running outside while snowing almost naked) and while a fight between the two men (awkard and disorienting fight scene by the way). Other than that, it is a bland drama mixed with drops of comedy (black) a spit of racism, an understatement of men trying to hide their homosexuality by making a family, some affairs made for revenge or from lack of affection that came from the fact a couple can't have their own kid... Boring most of the way, some interesting (yet forgettable) moments of clarity, and a boy chore band every now and then, just to highlight key spots in the movie, trying to make us smile (not laugh). Bland movie that I will forget in less than a week... Could be better, could be worse... Avoid if you are sleepy, or having something better to watch or do... You will not lose your time, but you will not gain anything either... It is better than seeing commercials, or a soap opera, but that's about it... Nothing special, nothing good or bad... :P

Happy Together

[valis1949 · 8/10 · 24 May 2012]

HAPPY,HAPPY (dir. Anne Sewitsky) The film is an off-beat examination of two failing marriages in a very isolated, wintry, and picturesque area of Norway. An urban professional couple have fled the city with their adopted African son, and they are trying to reestablish their marriage after the wife's infidelity. Their new neighbors are another couple with a young boy, and the husband is a repressed homosexual, and his wife is in denial. This leads to an illicit sexual affair, and the the film documents the couples' dramatic realignment. Several times during the film a 'Greek Chorus' of singers interrupt the drama with Country- Western inflected Negro Spirituals, and both genres are singularly American, and this made me wonder about the director's attitude towards Americans. Is the director asking Norwegian audiences to view the universal problem of sexual infidelity through American eyes? The songs seemed to be selected to suggest 'lost love' or 'longing' which reinforce a major theme of the film, and reminded me of Lindsay Anderson's surrealistic film, O LUCKY MAN, in which Alan Price's combo provided random musical commentary. Another strange or unusual aspect in the film is the treatment of 'Race'. The African child is asked to play a slave by the other young boy. This is rather inexplicable, yet it might be an attempt to demonstrate the child's confusion over his father's sexual identity. This is a thought provoking and strikingly original film, and I highly recommend it.

A movie with several charming moments

[peefyn · 6/10 · 12 November 2016]

Sykt Lykkelig is not a bad movie, and even though some places market it as a movie that targets the female demographic, it's really a movie for everyone (though maybe not kids).

There's several charming moments in this movie. The characters are both really nice, with their quirks and their flaws. The master/slave-games the children are playing is a good example of the dark comedy in this movie. And there's plenty of embarrassing moments in this movie, for those who like that sort of humor. And I like that the movie is set in rural Norway.

But the movie never really reaches that high. The charming moments come and go, and the characters do all change throughout the movie, but when it's over, it kind of feels like it was all for nothing.

It's a movie worth watching, but I can't imagine revisiting this movie much.

Not enough going on and a bit predictable

[thedelicatebeat · 4/10 · 10 August 2012]

I knew after the first 10 minutes that it was going to be pretty much like this for the entirety of the film. Sometimes, that's a good thing. In this case, no. Unless you enjoy uncomfortable domestic situations and people who are insecure and story lines that offer no relief. I'm sorry, but it's not entertaining, for one thing - but it's also not making a grande statement. It's just not pleasurable to watch. I guess, if I would say one thing, I feel bad that very fine actors were involved in this effort, mostly because the script left them nowhere interesting to go. It's definitely not a comedy in the sense that I was hoping for. Maybe Norwegians think this is hilarious? I'm not sure. But as an American who loves mostly foreign films, this one struck me as one to put back in the DVD box before I could make it to one laugh.

Very funny, very Scandinavian

[Nat64 · 8/10 · 12 December 2012]

Well, I'll try to elude subjective views as I lived in Sweden - I know this movie takes place in Norway, but anyone whom has lived in either of these countries would say that they are very similar culturally speaking.

So, the main character is Kaja, a young, vivid women living with her husband and son in a remote place. Everything seems to be perfectly normal, in appearance... until a young couple coming from the city moves in next door.

And then, the "faithful heterosexual family" norm is all falling apart, everybody is trying to get attention from the wrong person and it results VERY funny and critical regarding the so-called egalitarianism of Scandinavian countries.

I recommend this movie to anyone who wants to have a laugh and open its mind.

Norway, Appalachia and the human need for resolution.

[katiebethbugs · 8/10 · 13 December 2020]

I loved this film. Two couples with turmoil under the surface collide in a film about their vulnerabilities-in-common. Kaya needs attention so badly, it made me connect with her right away. This coupled with the spontaneous quartet-singings of old Appalachian songs made me smile I grew up with that music here in the American South, so I was impressed with the renditions.. It doesn't matter where you are from in this world; We all have the same problems. I don't want to give anything away by detailing the interpersonal dynamics, but I loved the beautiful trainwreck it created. I have watched it a couple of times over the years. It is one of my "go-to" movie. Love, oh careless love. Loved it.