It’s been a while since Joachim Trier wrapped up his Oslo Trilogy with “The Worst Person in the World,” the film that launched Renate Reinsve to international stardom and delivered Trier his long-overdue breakthrough.
Here comes “Sentimental Value,” Trier’s latest, obviously starring Reinsve, and a scene-stealing Stellan Skarsgård, which just had its trailer released this morning.
Reinsve plays Nora, a stage actress drawn into the orbit of her estranged father Gustav (Skarsgård), a once-revered filmmaker attempting to stage a late-career comeback after the death of his ex-wife. The catch: he offers Nora the lead role in a personal new film, and when she turns it down, the part goes to a young Hollywood star played by Elle Fanning.
The family drama, set against a filmmaking backdrop and steeped in emotional manipulation, took home the Grand Prix at Cannes. I thought Trier didn’t quite manage to pull all the threads together by the end, leaning into manufactured emotion where nuance should’ve done the heavy lifting. Still, based on the early U.S. reactions, I’m clearly in the minority when it comes to this one. The film has an 89 on Metacritic, and is by all accounts, headed for a Best Picture nomination.
Reinsve’s performance has already drawn awards chatter as well, with early predictions placing her in the thick of the Best Actress race. Fanning, too, is earning praise for a performance that intentionally leans into miscasting — playing a character whose very presence complicates everything for the central family.
Written by Trier and frequent collaborator Eskil Vogt, “Sentimental Value” continues the creative duo’s fascination with identity, relationships, and generational tension. Neon clearly knows what it has — the film is locked in for a November 7 release, a prime corridor for awards hopefuls and the same window “Anora,” “Anatomy of a Fall,” and “Parasite” had in years past.
It should be worth mentioning that Neon has two other Cannes-winning titles in its upcoming fall arsenal — “The Secret Agent” and Palme d’Or-winning “It Was Just An Accident.”
Criterion's December lineup has some great additions to the library, but the title that jumped out at me is Werner Herzog's "Grizzly Man," which officially joins the Collection on December 8.