IFFR 2021 - Persona Non Grata
IFFR - Rosalinde Mynster pictured in Persona Non GrataTo live a bohemian lifestyle, writing away in some crooked cabin somewhere in a distant land is surely the stuff of dreams. Few will ever make it happen, but those who do had better use their time as well as Laura (Rosalinde Mynster). She is, as the title would suggest, Persona Non Grata. Awkward it may be to return home for big events, she is given no choice under the guidance of director Lisa Jespersen in this fictional feature that shows the impact of dreaming big and succeeding. Those who do may deal with jealousy from strangers and friends, but surely, they should not expect that much from their family?
Laura and her family argue, often. They squabble and articulate their emotions poorly toward one another. It is the driving vice of Jespersen’s craft. Awkward family reunions only take an audience so far, and Persona Non Grata struggles to add depth to certain places. Their desire for adequacy in the presence of a daughter who has gone above and beyond what they expected of her or themselves is the uncomfortable topic Jespersen wishes to focus on. With decent camerawork, that feeling of isolation is brought to the forefront. Laura has nobody to share her passion with while at home, and frustration begins to mount when she realises her family truly do not care. They are not being rude or petty, but it is simply not their hobby to talk literature and life. Jespersen is frankly mature with this line of thought.
Presented here is the inevitable change that comes from leaving home. Away from the guidance and forced protection of parents and family values, Laura has grown as a person and changed. Culture's clash, despite the similar backgrounds. There are a handful of moments, like Laura dipping her toes into cow dung for no good reason, that weaken this maturity, but there are those poignant moments of tension and underlying anger that make Persona Non Grata a formidable drama. It has all the necessary conflicts and coercive characters but never takes them further than uncomfortable pockets. Cohesion is lacking at times, and while Jespersen makes an all-too-real setlist of troubles, how they fit together is a bit of a stretch and somewhat unconvincing.
Persona Non Grata shines best when it focuses on the intimate relationship between Laura and her return home. Usually, these are found when characters are introduced, complaining or cornered by a woman who has not received the warm welcome she expected. Expectations can often be deceiving or pessimistic, and there is a mature understanding of that found in the fabric of this Jespersen-directed feature. Squabbles escalate as the tensions between distant relatives and close family members boil over. It is captured with sincerity and is an admirable retelling of agreeable and grounded experiences. That is what Jespersen has. Experience. Not just behind the camera, but in acknowledging family's fracture over time, and acclimatising to that is not just an act of respect, but one of necessity. Persona Non Grata personifies that with exceptional clarity, but leaves much to be desired when most of its confrontations boil down to swears, surges of emotion and bouts of shouting.