Free Jimmy

I saw this movie last weekend and what a fun ride it was! As the first really BIG Norwegian animated movie since "Pinchcliffe Grand Prix" (Flåklypa Grand Prix for my Norwegian friends), I have to admit I had pretty high expectations, and I figured I was doomed to be disappointed. But I was wrong (yay!). This movie has got to be one of the funniest movies Ive seen in a really long time! -Funny, but not funny as in Disney/Dreamworks/Pixar -funny. The humor is dark...very dark, and certainly not for kids. -Which is why this movie is rated R. It has sex, blood, drugs and the kind of situations that makes you laugh even when you dont want to laugh. But most of all, this movie has heart.

The synopsis is simple; Jimmy is a circus elephant with 20 years of experience. 20 years of stress which has lead him addicted to drugs. Now throw in a group of animal rights defenders, a mafia consisting of Sami people (on motorcycles!), a hunting team desperate to kill an elk (or any other large animal that comes into sight) and a group of not so hard working, alcohol-consuming, lazy guys...all looking for an escaped junkie elephant on the Norwegian tundra.
These guys will make your eyes teary of laughter... while Jimmy will just make them teary. It certainly doesnt help that the writer/director Christopher Nielsen has dedicated the movie to his brother Joachim "jokke" Nielsen who died of an overdose in the year 2000.

Woody Harrelson is the voice of Roy Arnie (one of the circus guys) in the English version, so the movie will reach the other side of the Atlantic, no doubt. The movie is also scheduled for Cannes in May...so continental Europe may not have to wait too long.Check it out if you get the chance. It will be worth your time.