Review: Armand

Official Synopsis: Armand, a 6-year-old boy, is accused of crossing boundaries against his best friend at elementary school. His mother, Elisabeth (Renate Reinsve) is called to his school to discuss an action plan.

This is Norway's submission to the 2025 Oscars for Best International Feature and I've been itching to see what else Reinsve can do after her excellent performance in The Worst Person in The World. Turns out, she can do anything. I think she's even better here. 

I have to acknowledge the elephant in the room (in the blog?) This is going to get A LOT of comparisons to Germany's The Teachers' Lounge and while those are not completely unwarranted - this is another film set entirely in a school where a crime may have been committed - Armand takes a very different look at its subjects and how it plays out. 

The way this is shot is very captivating. Director Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel clearly knows what he's doing behind the camera despite this being his first full length feature. It has some of the best cinematography I've seen all year, and that's not common for a film set entirely in one indoor location. The script however doesn't fare as well. While is starts strong it eventually takes a messy tonal shift that it never quite recovers from. It's frustrating because while there's some beautiful imagery within these changes, I think I would've preferred a more straightforward story where a conclusion is reached, like Mass for example. 

You might leave this film wanting to strangle a few characters, hopefully if you're like me, you leave it less frustrated than you were with The Teacher's Lounge, but either way, while not perfect it's a promising debut for Ullmann Tøndel and Reinsve remains one to watch.

Grade: C+