Director: Susanne Bier.
Starring: Trine Dyrholm, Pierce Brosnan, Kim Bodnia, Paprika Steen, Molly Blixt Egelind, Sebastian Jessen.
Running Time: 116 minutes.
Certificate: 15.
Synopsis: Hairdresser Ida (Trine Dyrholm) discovers her husband Leif (Kim Bodnia) is having an affair, so escapes the troubles of everyday life to attend her daughter’s wedding. On the way, she meets Philip (Pierce Brosnan), who is introduced as a rude, obnoxious businessman – but first impressions are not all they seem.
Largely set in the beautiful landscapes of Italy, LOVE IS ALL YOU NEED focuses on the troubles of family life, losing love, relationships and finding love in new places. The Danish title translates as, ‘The Bald Hairdresser,’ and with the story also focusing on the issue of cancer, you feel genuine sympathy for Ida, especially when considering she is one of the few likeable characters and equally the only believable one.
For a film that is largely considered Danish, with a Danish director, Danish cast and Danish financial backing, it’s baffling as to why Pierce Brosnan is cast as Ida’s love interest, Philip. His character may be a British businessman working and living in Denmark, yet there are infuriating scenes in which he has conversations with employees that flit between the two languages. Brosnan’s performance is frankly woeful, his accent venturing from posh Brit, to Irish charmer, to loud American and often someone speaking as if English were a second language.
Susanne Bier is renowned for prioritising visual imagery in her films, and LOVE IS ALL YOU NEED is beautiful to look at, as Bier captures the Italian landscape beautifully, guaranteeing anyone who sees the film will want to visit the Italian coast to get away from the grey, miserable British weather. With brief moments of great humour, the film is indeed watchable, but suffers from being poorly acted and frustratingly boring. With a Danish male lead in place of Brosnan, LOVE IS ALL YOU NEED may have offered more, but unfortunately it stands as an underwhelming slow burner that struggles to gain momentum and offers very little.
LOVE IS ALL YOU NEED is released in UK cinemas today.
