★ 6 / 10
Istanbul
yusufpiskin
A 2012 film that begins in Istanbul, moves through Oslo, Helsinki, and Berlin, and chronicles the love between two Scandinavians who meet while vacationing in…
A 2012 film that begins in Istanbul, moves through Oslo, Helsinki, and Berlin, and chronicles the love between two Scandinavians who meet while vacationing in Istanbul... And this movie was filmed on my very street. In the fall of 2012, I was in Ukraine, and this crew came and shot a film on my street; talk about a stroke of bad luck!I hadn't seen any of Eirik Svensson's previous work until this picture. I tip my hat to him because he's helmed one of the better films shot in Turkey by a non-Turkish crew. Eschewing Orientalism and any jingoistic sentiment, he's captured some beautiful scenes, making good use of Istanbul's colors and sounds.However, the film hits a snag with its pacing once it leaves Istanbul. So much so that even the camera angles and music become uneven.The film is middling fare, and in that regard, it delivers on what it promises to its audience.
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★ 3 / 10
Not a success
euroGary
'Must Have Been Love' (its Norwegian title, 'En Som Deg', would more accurately translate as 'Someone Like You'), opens in İstanbul as three holidaying girls…
'Must Have Been Love' (its Norwegian title, 'En Som Deg', would more accurately translate as 'Someone Like You'), opens in İstanbul as three holidaying girls from Finland meet three holidaying boys from Norway. One each from the two groups - Kaisa and Jakub, respectively - hit it off rather well, although Jakub is mysteriously reluctant to explain why he dumped his fiancée. But the boys are leaving the next day, so the spark between the two never has the chance to, erm, ignite.
Some time later Kaisa, having secured employment in Norway, is wandering around an Oslo supermarket when she spots someone she thinks is Jakub: apart from a different hairstyle, moustache and one of those ludicrous little lip-beards, the resemblance is uncanny. However, it's *not* Jakub: this chap says he doesn't recognise Kaisa and denies ever having been in İstanbul. But he is attracted to her and the pair begin a relationship - indeed, Anders (for that is his name) follows Kaisa to Helsinki when she has to return to her native country and the pair set up home together. But then cracks start to appear in the relationship and it becomes apparent that Anders isn't exactly who Kaisa imagined him to be. Lucky for her she's met Jakub again...
After the film's showing at the 2013 London Film Festival I was walking behind two Norwegian women who had also seen it - my Norwegian isn't good enough to understand exactly what they were saying, but the tone of disbelief in their voices said it all. A British woman talking to her friend was even more understandable: "Actually, that girl really p****d me off" she commented (expletive deleted to get around IMDb's rather puritanical 'prohibted words' list!) The film certainly tries the viewer's patience: it starts off as a rather sweet and chaste romance, then veers into a sort of mystery (is Anders really Jakub? And what's this business with him standing in the road in his pants - is it a dream, or did it really happen?) The big reveal of Anders' identity leads the viewer to question Kaisa's sanity and undermines the entire film.
On the other hand, the acting is okay: Espen Klouman Høiner, as Jakub/Anders, manages to create two distinct but different characters; Pamela Tola as Kaisa is perfectly competent and very pretty.
So: man given to nocturnal wanderings in his pants? Check. Another man who refuses to discuss his former relationship? Check. Woman who imprints the features of might-have-been boyfriends onto other men? Check. This film is psychos in love!
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80%
AUDIENCE
5.6/10
621
