Renate Reinsve won the Best Actress prize at Cannes for the revelatory, complex performance that anchors this sprawlingly novelistic film by Norwegian auteur Joachim Trier, an emotionally intricate and exhilarating character study of a woman entering her thirties. Amid the seemingly endless possibilities of the modern world, Julie (Reinsve) wavers over artistic passions and professions, the question of motherhood, and relationships with two very different men: a successful comic-book artist (Trier regular Anders Danielsen Lie) and a charismatic barista (Herbert Nordrum). Working with a team of longtime collaborators, Trier and his perennial cowriter Eskil Vogt construct in The Worst Person in the World, the Oscar-nominated third entry in their unofficial Oslo Trilogy, a liberating portrait of self-discovery and a bracingly contemporary spin on the romantic comedy.

For in-depth thoughts on The Worst Person In The World, please see my colleague Payton Coelho’s review from its Sundance debut here.

Video Quality

The Worst Person In The World comes to Blu-Ray in an AVC encoded transfer from a 2K digital master in 1.85:1 courtesy of The Criterion Collection which provides a sumptuous presentation that presents this film flawlessly. This lovely presentation offers a stable image quality throughout without any visual deficits. The fact that this was shot on 35mm translates well on disc with most shots presenting with more texture than many modern digital productions.

Cinematographer Kasper Tuxen captures some striking scenery which really wows in high definition. Skin tones look natural throughout the runtime. Not only do the textural details render cleanly, but colors are suffused in a way that matches the aesthetic of the film. Colors especially pop when it comes to clothing and certain distinct pieces of production design. There is no evidence of compression artifacts or other digital nuisances even in the most dimly lit locations. I do not see how this disc could have been improved significantly without a 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc. It’s a truly stunning transfer.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray disc comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that is surprisingly active. While this movie is very dialogue-driven, the track really comes alive with the environmental sounds both in the outdoor noises along with the ambiance of certain interiors like the numerous parties Julie finds herself attending or crashing. The environmental effects create a natural soundscape filled with little nuances that do a lovely job of transporting you to this setting. Activity in the low end is decent, but it mostly aids in providing additional texture to the world.

The musical cues and score are showcased impeccably here with an enveloping use of the surround speakers that maintains precise fidelity. The dialogue comes through crystal clear without ever being overpowered by the environmental effects or the music. The sound design is just as precisely thought-out as the on screen visuals with all of the sounds positioned just right in the mix. This is a stellar audio presentation that brings the movie to life in a really fulfilling way. There are optional English and French subtitles provided.

Special Features

The Criterion Blu-Ray of The Worst Person In The World includes a foldout booklet featuring the essay “Lost and Found” by writer Sheila O’Malley in which she provides a great amount of insight into and analysis of the film that helps highlight the deeper themes on display, the connections to other works from Joachim Trier and more. The on-disc special features are as follows:

The Making Of The Worst Person In The World: A terrific 50-minute documentary featuring new interviews with director Joachim Trier; coscreenwriter Eskil Vogt; actors Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, and Herbert Nordrum; cinematographer Kasper Tuxen; and sound designer Gisle Tveito. This piece starts out with some background information on the friendship and collaboration between Trier and Vogt before exploring their unique writing process, what each of them bring to project, the qualities that these performers bring to their roles, the elements of magical realism, the creative safety of the filmmaking environment, the comic book art, the editing of the film, the “musicality” of the picture, the sound design of the film and more. Do not skip out of this if you enjoy the film.

Behind The Scenes – Frozen In Time: An 18-minute exploration of how the filmmaking team pulled off a key sequence in the film and the work of cinematographer Kasper Tuxen. This piece delves some into the look they wanted to achieve for the feature, shooting on 35mm, the collaborative process and much before going into the “frozen” scene with Julie running across Oslo. You really get a sense of how much preparation it took to set up the camera equipment, position the frozen characters just right, maintain the right lighting, maintain the illusion and more which took weeks of shooting.

Deleted Scenes: Four scenes of unused material totaling eleven minutes are provided here featuring Julie having a back-and-forth text conversation with Aksel, Julie having a frank conversation with her friend, Julie indulging in some petty crime and more.

Final Thoughts

The Worst Person In The World is a tremendous breakthrough for Joachim Trier, who has been making quality movies for years but is only now receiving his proper recognition. The story is one told with such a raw and delicate touch that you cannot help but be fully won over by its eccentricities. The tonal balance this narrative has to maintain is supremely tricky, but Trier and Vogt make it seem easy as it oscillates between hilarity and heartbreak. Renate Reinsve and the rest of the ensemble deliver some of the finest work of the year without exception. The Criterion Collection has released a fantastic new Blu-Ray with a top-notch A/V presentation and some special features that are not to be missed. This story is one that only continues to reward repeat viewings, so you owe it to yourself to pick up one of the best films of the year for your collection. Highly Recommended

The Criterion Collection edition of The Worst Person In The World will be available to purchase on June 28, 2022 on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: The Criterion Collection has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.