SENTIMENTAL VALUE
Starring: Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, and Elle Fanning
Director: Joachim Trier
ADRIANO
Sentimental Value's impact is an interesting one because it took me a minute to fully get hit by the film's multi-layered writing. While watching it, I was taken aback by Joachim Trier's direction; however, his writing, while grounded and interesting in its depiction of a broken family, didn't get that stunning realization out of me until I considered Trier was saying that, like a home, a family is something that will forever need to be worked on. Pair that with exceptional performances and ambitious filmmaking, and Trier has created another beautiful instant classic.
NICK
I'm not sure why Sentimental Value didn’t work as well for me as it did for others. The performances are great, the story is tight and well thought out, and I have no real qualms about Joachim Trier's direction. Yet, I didn’t emotionally connect to this story in any way. Whether it’s the focus on generational trauma, making up for lost time, or simply the bond of family, I never found myself moved. It’s all a fairly mundane affair, and while Trier succeeded in making the characters feel like a real-life fractured family, they just weren’t a family I could fully invest in.
AMARÚ
The highest compliment I can give Sentimental Value is that it’s an easy watch. When films explore such complicated familial relationships, especially in conjunction with the entertainment industry, they can easily become so heavy that you’re waiting for the tragic beauty to end. But the dreamlike disjointedness in which Joachim Trier directed this had me breezily enraptured in its humanity. While many will talk about Renate Reinsve, Elle Fanning, and Stellan Starsgård, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas stole my heart, reinforcing how deeply I cared for the family at the center, whose conflicts I’d gladly revisit again.
This film was reviewed by Nick and Adriano as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.