Pity the Lovers/Vesalings Elskendur Wayward Endeavors: Comedies From the North

Icelandic brothers Oskar (Bjorn Thors) and Maggi (Joel Ingi Saemundsson) have both been unlucky in love, though for very different reasons: while the perpetually-dateless Oskar spends most of his time hanging out with his dog Otto, the lothario Maggi gets around plenty, but has never spent all that much time in a long-term relationship. Neither of them can quite figure out what they’re doing wrong — and what makes them so different from all of their friends who have paired up and gotten married.

But when the two find themselves unexpectedly living together — after Oskar moves back to his parents’ old house in the suburbs, and when a breakup leaves Maggi suddenly homeless — their differences begin to rub off on one another. As Oskar begins learning the confidence to ask out his longtime friend-turned-crush Anna, Maggi begins to learn that there’s more to a fulfilling relationship than just another conquest.

Alongside other neighborhood characters — including a bizarre conceptual artist, a pair of goth tweens named Danni, and the house itself — the ensemble of this Icelandic film discovers important things about longing, love, and growing up. Directed by Maximilian Hult (Sweden/Iceland, 2019)