SENTIMENTAL VALUE

(director/writer: Joachim Trier; screenwriter: Eskil Vogt; cinematographer: Kasper Tuxen; editor: Olivier Bugge Coutté; music: Hania Rani; cast: Renate Reinsve (Nora), Stellan Skarsgård (Gustav Borg), Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Agnes Borg Petterson), Elle Fanning (Rachel Kemp), Anders Danielsen Lie (Jakob), Jesper Christensen (Michael), Lena Endre (Ingrid Berger), Cory Michael Smith (Sam), Catherine Cohen (Nicky), Andreas Stoltenberg Granerud (Even), Øyvind Hesjedal Loven (Erik), Lars Väringer (Peter); Runtime: 132; MPAA Rating: NR; producers: Maria Ekerhovd, Andrea Berentsen Ottmar; A Mer Film; 2025-Sweden/ Germany/ Norway/ Denmark/France/UK-Norwegian & English)

“The Scandinavian actors are superb.”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

Norwegian director Joachim Trier (“Reprise”/”The Worst Person in the World”) co-writes with regular collaborator Eskil Vogt this probing but heavy-going domestic film (with hints of being a wannabe Bergman film).

Nora (Renate Reinsve) is a successful actress on Oslo’s National Theater stage. We see her experience a panic attack before going on stage, as she suffers from stage fright.


Gustav Borg (Stellan Skarsgård), an aging legendary filmmaker, is Nora’s estranged father. He left Nora and her younger sister Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas) when they were children. A flashback shows their separation.

One day Gustav reunites with his daughters, and he’s warmly received by Agnes and not so well-received by Nora. He offers Nora a starring role in his upcoming film, a role he wrote with her in mind, but she declines and the Hollywood actress Rachel Kemp (Elle Fanning) gets the part. This allows their separation to continue.

The engaging melodrama is emotionally restrained. The story of a relationship between an artistic father and daughter is poignant, and the Scandinavian actors are superb, but it never says anything profound.


It played at the Cannes Film Festival.

REVIEWED ON 7/10/2025  GRADE: B-
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