Oliver, in his early twenties, lives with his mother Freyja.and his eleven year old brother Hrafn. Father died long ago. Freyja has a drug problem and is currently unemployed, although interviewing for jobs. Hrafn has problems with bullies at school. Oliver holds a menial job in a car workshop but manages to keep the family afloat (they live in a decent apartment and even own a car). In spite of a harrowing childhood, Oliver is a responsible, level headed young man and a surrogate father for his brother. He is integrated in his milieu; has good friends, attends parties, flirts gently with girls.
One day his world comes crashing down; Freyja's drug debt forces him to confront a criminal gang. At tis point the movie could have gone the Tarantino/Rodriguez way, but it does not do so. Oliver is not a killer (he is probably unfamiliar with guns) and his decisions are instinctive, desperate and mostly unsuccessful. The bitter but logic ending is open but lets in some hope.
Directors Anton Kristensen and Asgeir Sigurdsson (the latter also script writer) tell the tale in a dynamic, stylish way. Some action scenes are shot a la Dogme 95 with jerky camera movements that sometimes leave characters out of the frame. Other scenes are long takes of everyday objects (buildings, a highway at night) imbued with foreboding. Acting, especially by Asgeir Sigurdsson is excellent although there are probably too many close ups of him on screen. All in all, an excellent movie that attains brilliantly its objectives The original title, that means "Harm" or "Grief" fits the movie better than the translation.
