Show Me Love

A colossal hit in its native Sweden, this charming rite of passage picture marks the feature debut of acclaimed poet and short film-maker, Lukas Moodysson. However, its treatment of alienated adolescence, provincial ennui and sexual confusion is every bit as superficial as the numerous American indies that have tackled the subject of lesbian first love. Rebecca Liljeberg's performance as the 15-year-old outsider who falls for school stunner Alexandra Dahlström brims with anti-parental resentment and repressed longing. Alas, such perspicacity is absent from the depiction of more peripheral characters, particularly the roughly caricatured boys.