Writer/director Kristoffer Borgli’s new film is the darkest of black comedies, at least until the comedy runs out. He imagines the natural progression of an average young woman so obsessed with gaining attention that she resorts to extreme measures, including self-harm. He seems to be poking fun at the entire social media phenomenon and the idea that any publicity is good publicity, up to the point his plot runs into the ugly reality that there’s no real path for redemption past a certain point of narcissism.
Signe (Kristine Kujath Thorp) and Thomas (Eirik Sæther) are a hip young Norwegian couple happily living together in an urban paradise until Thomas begins to garner some minor fame for his furniture art. Borgli quickly makes it clear that both characters want to be the center of attention at all times, so when Signe starts feeling left out she casts about for ways to draw the spotlight back to herself. Signe’s progression of desperate ideas are the most uncomfortably hilarious events in the film, ranging from her futile attempt to get a dog to attack her to feigning a debilitating nut allergy at a dinner honoring Thomas.
Borgli revels in showing that both characters are equally shallow, such as when Thomas tries to finish his self-congratulatory speech at his celebratory dinner while Signe convulses beside him, or when he later demands that his crafted furniture not be used in photographs accompanying a news story about Signe because he claims to want to reserve its reveal for an art show. It’s great fun watching the two superficial fools trying to one-up each other, until Signe runs across a web article about a powerful Russian drug that causes skin deformations.
From that inflection point, the plot moves from darkly humorous to just plain dark, with Signe procuring and ingesting the drug in such excessive amounts that her condition gradually moves from a light rash to a permanently ravaged visage, internal bleeding, and hair loss. She may get all the attention and sympathy she’s been craving, but at such a crippling cost that her fate becomes a grim warning rather than a winking satire. While the last act takes things a bit too far, Borgli’s film is decidedly thought-provoking and blisteringly original, anchored by strong performances and brisk, assured direction.
Interestingly, for someone so obsessed with gaining attention, Signe seems to have little experience with or interest in social media, instead considering a front-page newspaper article about her to be the pinnacle of self-promotion. She’s more concerned with getting sympathy from people in her existing circle rather than expanding her brand, a decidedly old-school mindset compared to her real-life tech-savvy peers who likely don’t even know physical newspapers still exist.
Sick of Myself is now playing in New York and opens today at the Nuart in Los Angeles before expanding to major markets throughout the next month. Borgli will also be appearing in person at the Nuart screenings for Q&A sessions today and tomorrow. For more information, visit sickofmyself.com.
