Instead of Abracadabra

Sundance’s online slate for 2009 kicks off with Instead of Abracadabra, an accomplished comedy out of Sweden that alternates broad gag-humor with a tale of personal growth. Director Patrik Eklund’s previous short, 2007′s Situation Frank, played at Cannes and was well received, leading to high anticipation for this outing.

Thomas is our main character, a magician…of sorts. He is 25, lives at home, and maybe because of that he has the bratty petulance of a Napolean Dynamite. He also has illusions of grandeur that remind one of another famous comedic role, Will Arnett’s magician character G.O.B. in Arrested Development. Sadly his skills in magic seem to hew closely to G.O.B’s as well, but, the appearance of a pretty new neighbor provides the impetus to perhaps pull Thomas out of his rut

Due to the self-imposed parameters of this site, I rarely watch films over 12 minutes long, so it feels somewhat strange for me to call Instead of Abracadabra snappy, but it is a truly apt description. Scenes zip along with fierce economy, meaning that you are getting a feature’s worth of scenes and development compacted into that running time, which I find great. One of my great laments concerning modern comedy is the prevalence of exaggerated setups leading only to a mediocre laugh. The quality of the script for this film and the briskness of it’s timing, eliminated that concern for me.

The script frankly is just well-crafted. The scenes and their order make logical sense, nothing is rushed, and all the familiar structural components of the Hollywood style are nailed. Furthermore, elements and jokes established early in the film are satisfactorily tied into the conclusion. The buffoonery of Thomas is the main comedic engine, but strong writing and performances from the supporting characters impart plenty of quick hit laughs during expository moments. What i especially liked was, despite recognizing the formula, I still could be surprised. I’ll return to the comparison’s made above. The film establishes Thomas early on as an object of ridicule, similar to G.O.B. with his misguided flamboyance and rather pathetic skills, and throughout the film you wonder if that is the extent of his character and the purpose of the film—to be the actor of a farce—or whether he is more like Napolean; someone to laugh at surely, but also to empathize with, and whom is ultimately capable of transcendence. Eklund treats this question ambiguously throughout the film, which generates legitimate suspense in the climactic scene.

These strong components, paired with plus marks in acting and cinematography, easily overcome reservations regarding the film’s length. Since we are not originating these film choices like we do on our normal weekly basis, I feel no pressure to provide a positive review, (in fact I secretly am hoping for a bad film to pop up so that I can slam it, since I never get to do that) but (un)fortunately Instead of Abracadabra is superior entertainment. Grab it now, in case Sundance continues its habit of the last couple of years and make the film unavailable after today.

A Sundance 10/10 film: currently offline