(Original - Den skaldede frisør, 2012)

Love Is All You Need starts as a run-of-the-mill romantic comedy, albeit in Danish rather than English. I did find myself wondering why Brosnan would be involved in a non-english project like this. That was just me being ignorant as it turns out... As the story develops, neglected cancer survivor Ida (Trine Dyrholm) is estranged from her husband and meets Philip, widower father of her daughter's fiancee. A fairly predictable setup? Yes. Does what you think will happen, happen? Yes. But also a lot more.

There is far more here an the usual Hollywood serving of this genre. Deeper, richer, conflicted characters, darker humour, exceptional performances from everyone and a light, even pace that keeps the pressure off, to prevent the story from entering the 'heavy drama' zone. Ida (Dyrholm) is enchanting to Philip (Brosnan), and Brosnan plays Philip as a template Bronte/du Maurier dark gothic style romantic hero. It is really captivating to watch Brosnan in this role, away from the shadow of Bond and away from the flippant humour of some other performances. The not-so-usual ending and gradual focus on Ida and Philip, away from the event of their children's wedding make this a very watchable film, with a heart warming story that doesn't pander or behave overly predictably. This respect for the audience is very probably a large part of the appeal of Love Is All You Need. I would highly recommend taking a partner if possible. As does my wife.

8.5/10

Kushal