- Next Door (2005) movie review summary: Pål Sletaune’s eerily erotic thriller delves into psychological and sexual realms where Vertigo, Psycho, and Frenzy director Alfred Hitchcock might have ventured had he been around in the early 21st century. As the disoriented male lead, Kristoffer Joner delivers an enthralling performance.
Next Door (2005) movie review: Pål Sletaune ventures into psychological realms where Hitchcock never dared to tread
In the Kafkaesque horror thriller Next Door / Naboer, screenwriter-director Pål Sletaune’s ventures into psychological and sexual territory where Alfred Hitchcock – in spite of efforts like Spellbound, Vertigo, Psycho, Marnie, and Frenzy – never dared (or was never allowed) to tread.
Following a nasty confrontation with his former girlfriend, Ingrid (Anna Bache-Wiig), the emotionally unbalanced John (Kristoffer Joner) becomes acquainted with his two attractive but weird neighbors, the sisters Anne (Cecilie A. Mosli) and Kim (Julia Schacht).
What follows in the two young women’s dark, claustrophobic apartment is a mix of kinky sex, graphic violence, and uncanny mind games.
Really, are the thin walls separating the two dwellings the actual reason for the women’s extensive knowledge of John’s life?
And can John’s own perceptions and memories be trusted?
Whether or not one can predict where Staune’s narrative is headed, his solid grip on the unsettling proceedings – underlined by Simon Boswell’s first-rate, Psycho-inspired score and cinematographer John Andreas Andersen’s washed-out hues – should keep freaked-out viewers’ interest.
Excellent performances
As a plus, Next Door boasts a trio of first-rate performances.
Cecilie A. Mosli and Julia Schacht are convincingly sexy/creepy as the two peculiar siblings, while [eventual Best Actor Amanda Award (Norwegian Oscar) winner] Kristoffer Joner is a sensational antihero as their off-kilter neighbor; like Anthony Perkins in Psycho and Peter Lorre in M, John is at turns sinister and pitiable, at times both. In point of fact, Joner delivers what’s easily one of the most compelling portrayals of the year.
In all, Next Door may not be a cinematic masterpiece, but it is the sort of movie that the aforementioned Hitchcock might have come up with – with the inevitable addition of a director’s cameo and several darkly humorous touches – had he been at work in the early 21st century.
Next Door (2005) cast & crew
Original Title: Naboer.
Direction & Screenplay: Pål Sletaune.
Cast:
Kristoffer Joner … John
Cecilie A. Mosli … Anne
Julia Schacht … Kim
Anna Bache-Wiig … Ingrid
Michael Nyqvist … Åke
Øystein Martinsen … Peter
Odd Arno Midtsjø … Old Man
Magne Kipperrud … KollegaCinematography: John Andreas Andersen.
Film Editing: Darek Hodor.
Music: Simon Boswell.
Production Design: Jack Van Domburg.
Producer: Turid Øversveen.
Running Time: 75 min.
Countries: Norway | Sweden | Denmark.
“Next Door (2005) Review” notes/references
Next Door reviewed at the 2005 AFI FEST (website).
Next Door (2005) movie credits via the British Film Institute (BFI) website.
Kristoffer Joner and Julia Schacht Next Door image: Nordisk Film Biografdistribution.
“Next Door (2005) Review: Where Hitchcock Never Dared to Tread” last updated in November 2024.