It’s hardly surprising that Stellan Skarsgård won a series of Best Actor Awards and the director Hans Petter Moland the same, because this film is a sly, dark and quirky comedy which centres around ‘Ulrik’ a man reluctantly released from prison after 12 years for murder; while his useless criminal buddies are delighted to have him back in the fold, all that Ulrik wants to do is re-connect with his wife and son and develop a regular life. It’s not that easy of course and the pressure for violence pitted against his new found passivity is what drives the drama. Populated with a terrific set of low life misfits and eccentric characters, the picture is somewhat reminiscent of early Cohen Brother work; but in truth it has its own voice and Skarsgård’s deadpan delivery is a joy.