This Must Be the Place

Filmen er flot og skæv, og sender os gennem et Amerika der for en gangs skyld ligener sig selv - og ikke er dullet op eller syltet ind i tilfældig vold.

Sean Penn spiller fantastisk, og gør det på en underspillet måde som gør det troværdigt. Det er en poetisk film, men først og fremmest det - og heller ikke meget mere end det.

Everybody seems to be doing something artistic". This is an almost precise quotation from the film. This is said by our protagonist, Cheyenne. The way he talks, or, almost whispers, is essential for the film.
Why is it, this whispering, I mean? Well, when someone whispers, or talks in a low voice, you tend to pay more attention, you want to hear and understand what is being said.
Or, has he lost his voice? And does this voice, or lack of, symbolize something? I think so.
Here we have this former rock star who has everything money can buy, and a doting, motherly wife. Allthesame his life is empty and boring, han he seems to be looking for a chance to FEEL something.
We cannot but believe, that he once was wild, loud and carismatic on stage. But not so anymore. Now he walks, talks
and looks like a sad clown. But all this his going to change.
Our Hero is sent on a classic roadtrip after the death of his father. There are people he must meet, situations me must deal with on his own, and he has decided to finish his dead father's quest for revenge on his nazi torturer.
Our Hero is already a good man. But he needs to grow, and he does, grow, I mean.
He literally grows from teenage attire, into the attire of a man of his actual age.
I love this character who is moulded by the film director and Sean Penn. I love the slow pace of the film, slow is more!
I am going to see it again sometime soon. This film is unique.
Love to all filmers from Bodil.

I really enjoyed this movie. It’s slow moving and character driven with a brilliant performance by Shawn Penn, as the aging, ex-rock star, Cheyenne, living in self-imposed exile in Ireland after a tragedy. Penn/Cheyenne reminded me of a sad rock version of Michael Jackson with a high pitched, squeaky voice and the child like naivety of a man who hasn’t grown up. But underneath that is a man who feels things very deeply and is an astute judge of character. He spends his time in Ireland dragging a shopping trolley-bag around the local supermarket and shopping centre in full makeup, to the amusement of the locals, occasionally meeting with the 1 or 2 friends he has, dealing in shares (in Tesco, which was funny for a Brit), and living with his firefighter wife, who is played by the always great Frances McDormand.
The film is split into 2, with the first part spent in Ireland where we follow Cheyenne through his sad existence, but on hearing of his estranged father’s impending death, the 2nd part takes place in the US where, against all odds, Cheyenne decides to take on his father’s life long task of tracking down the Nazi who tormented his father in a concentration camp. Here he goes on a kind of odyssey across America (dragging a trolley suitcase) in search of this man, meeting and befriending the strangest of people, each one getting him closer to his target.
A cameo appearance by David Byrne, who performs This Must Be The Place, is great and the time spent with the Nazi’s granddaughter is very touching, but Judd Hirsch’s professional Nazi hunter, is best and funniest of the characters he meets. Cheyenne impresses and annoys him in equal measure.
When I started writing this, I was going to give the film 4 stars, but the more I think about it, the more it grows on me. 5-stars!

Virkelig sjov og god. Sean Penn spiller overbevisende med en tør humor og en eftertænksom visdom