Släkten är värst: A chaotic mess of white lies

Is it worth your time?

Look, if you’re into classic Swedish comedies that lean heavily on the "panicked guy running around in circles" trope, you’ll probably have a decent time with Släkten är värst. It’s got that specific, frantic energy from the era where everyone is shouting a bit too much and the doors are constantly slamming.

If you prefer your movies to have, you know, actual plot consistency or characters who don't act like lunatics, you might want to skip this one. It’s light, it’s breezy, and it’s about as deep as a puddle in July.

The Setup

Our lead is basically living on borrowed time and borrowed money. He’s got this Aunt Anna who thinks he’s a model citizen with a thriving family life. When she drops by Stockholm, he has to pull in every favor he’s got to make his apartment look like a home instead of a bachelor pad.

Watching him try to pass off random strangers as his kin is… well, it’s stressful. The pacing is weirdly uneven, too. Some scenes feel like they were cut off with kitchen scissors while others drag on just to show a reaction shot of someone looking confused. Classic, right?

I couldn't help but think about how these kinds of comedies usually go. You get a bit of that same frantic energy you’d find in something like On Your Back, where the stakes feel totally manufactured but the actors are selling it like their lives depend on it.

Odd bits and pieces

• There’s a moment with a hat that I’m still not sure was intentional or if the actor just dropped it.
• The aunt is actually kind of terrifying.
• The apartment set looks like it’s held together by tape and optimism.

There's this one sequence where the lead is trying to hide someone behind a curtain, and it lasts about ten seconds too long. You can literally see the actor waiting for his cue to move. It’s charming in a 'nobody cares about continuity' sort of way. 😅

It’s not trying to change the world. It just wants to get a few laughs before the reel runs out. Sometimes, that’s enough. Other times, you just want the guy to stop lying so we can all go home. If you go in expecting a masterpiece, you’re in the wrong place. If you go in with a cold beer and an afternoon to kill, it’s perfectly fine.