Who's to say being born with a blood alcohol level of less than .05 is too low? Wouldn't the normal situation be that one is born with no alcohol in one's blood? Unless of course, the mother is an alcoholic giving birth; that would make some sense. The outlandish concept intrigued me enough to look up the name of the scientist mentioned in the story. Finn Skårderud is a real person, a Norwegian psychiatrist and psychotherapist who's also an internationally acknowledged expert on eating disorders. The theory on which the film is based is not only untested, it's not even a real theory. It comes from a misinterpreted preface written by Skårderud to a book first published in 1880, 'on the psychological effects of wine'.
With that said, the story focuses on four adult friends who decide to take the matter of achieving an .05 blood alcohol level seriously, to see what it does for their personal relationships and professional creativity. When early results appear promising, the group makes the fatal mistake of assuming that if a little bit is good, then more must be better. This results in the characters falling down drunk and making a mess of their lives to the point of harming themselves, and in the case of soccer coach Tommy (Thomas Bo Larsen), falling off a boat and drowning during an alcoholic stupor. (Whether his dog was recovered safely was never resolved).
There's also a questionable scene in which one of the men named Peter (Lars Ranthe) suggests that one of his students take a shot or two prior to taking an oral exam to calm his nerves. It works for that student for the sake of the story, but I have to wonder how bad a message that might send to an aspiring undergrad. Seems to me there's enough alcoholism in the general population without encouraging it in the name of education.
With some serio-comic moments, the film does explore the often horrific side effects of uncontrolled drinking and how that can ruin relationships and a promising future. If I were in a flippant mood I'd say to keep a drink handy while watching, but the tone of the picture is just a bit too serious to take lightly. A montage of real life politicians under the influence is shown at one point, suggesting that some of their world influencing decisions might have been poured straight out of a bottle.
With that said, the story focuses on four adult friends who decide to take the matter of achieving an .05 blood alcohol level seriously, to see what it does for their personal relationships and professional creativity. When early results appear promising, the group makes the fatal mistake of assuming that if a little bit is good, then more must be better. This results in the characters falling down drunk and making a mess of their lives to the point of harming themselves, and in the case of soccer coach Tommy (Thomas Bo Larsen), falling off a boat and drowning during an alcoholic stupor. (Whether his dog was recovered safely was never resolved).
There's also a questionable scene in which one of the men named Peter (Lars Ranthe) suggests that one of his students take a shot or two prior to taking an oral exam to calm his nerves. It works for that student for the sake of the story, but I have to wonder how bad a message that might send to an aspiring undergrad. Seems to me there's enough alcoholism in the general population without encouraging it in the name of education.
With some serio-comic moments, the film does explore the often horrific side effects of uncontrolled drinking and how that can ruin relationships and a promising future. If I were in a flippant mood I'd say to keep a drink handy while watching, but the tone of the picture is just a bit too serious to take lightly. A montage of real life politicians under the influence is shown at one point, suggesting that some of their world influencing decisions might have been poured straight out of a bottle.