South of the Highway: A bit dusty, a bit sweet

Should you bother?

If you like movies that feel like a quiet Sunday afternoon in a farmhouse, you’ll probably find something to latch onto here. If you need pacing that moves faster than a tractor in low gear, stay away. This is for the folks who appreciate a bit of character grit over flashy plot twists.

Edvard Persson is the anchor here, and he’s got that specific kind of weary, heavy-set gravitas that makes you believe he’s actually worried about money. The whole premise is just a guy trying to keep his head above water with these looming study debts. It’s not exactly The Godfather, but it’s got teeth in its own way.

There’s a scene about halfway through—I think it’s near the kitchen table—where the lighting is just… okay, it’s not great, but it feels lived in. You can almost smell the coffee and the stale tobacco. That’s where the movie actually lives. It stops trying to be a drama and just becomes a snapshot.

I found myself thinking about The Singing Brakeman while watching this, mainly because both films lean so hard into their specific, slightly regional atmosphere. They don't care if you get every cultural reference. They just want you to sit there and be part of the room for a while.

The pacing is honestly a bit all over the place. Some shots hang around for an eternity, like the camera guy forgot to yell cut. It’s a bit sloppy, sure, but it also gives the actors room to breathe in a way you don't get in modern, chopped-up editing suites.

Random notes from my notepad:

• The coats in this movie look incredibly heavy. I’m cold just watching them walk around.
• Is it just me, or does the background music fade in at the weirdest possible moments?
• There’s a bit of back-and-forth between the father and son that felt way too real. Like, painful real.
• The way they handle the debt talk is surprisingly grounded. No grand speeches, just a lot of sighing and looking at paper.

It’s not a masterpiece. It’s barely even a 'great' film by the standards of people who keep spreadsheets of their favorites. But it’s got a heartbeat. Sometimes that’s enough to keep you watching until the credits roll, even if you’re mostly just waiting to see if he ever pays the damn bill.