Border is about a customs officer, Tina (Eva Melander) who has a sense of smell that allows her to sniff out illegal activity. One day an odd-looking guy appears called Vore (Eero Milonoff), who looks a bit like her. She smells something suspicious about him, but also finds him strangely attractive—there is obviously some connection between the two. It then becomes a strange film about outsiders, with a body horror aspect to it.
The result is a wildly strange movie that goes in directions that you definitely do not see coming, with a sex scene that gives Possession a run for its money as the weirdest sex scene ever committed to film. Its main problem is that it’s perhaps a bit too low-key for its own good. Although its strangeness has a nice heart to it, it’s so out there that it needed to go all out to be a real classic. That said, you’ll see some things that you’ll never forget.
It certainly won’t be for everyone, especially the unpleasant pedophile sub-plot (a thriller element that probably didn’t need to be there). Some viewers will love it; while I wasn’t in that camp, it was definitely unique and I respect that very much, despite its deep flaws.
At the helm is Ali Abbasi, an Iranian-Danish director, but it’s a Swedish production. Much of it is set in the Swedish woods, so it’s very beautiful, but ends up being a quite sad tale. There isn’t a lot that can be said in advance about Border: you’ll have to see it and make up your own mind.
★★★½
Ian Schultz
