Review of A Man Called Ove

Ove is a cranky old dude who has good reason to be so, given the hand life has dealt him. "A Man Called Ove" is a film about understanding that people's behavior takes place in a context that we will have a greater or lesser understanding of depending on how well we know that person's history. It's a message I appreciated, but the package it's wrapped in is a bit twee and saccharine for my taste. The film works overtime pushing emotional buttons, especially in its last 20 minutes or so, when what it really needed was some good old-fashioned Scandinavian austerity.

Grade: B