At its heart, Tits is a film about finding commonality with their insecurities, Oscar and Iben are completely relatable characters who show us the differing complexities of being a teenager. Eivind Landsik has made a refreshing and vulnerable film.
Following an unpleasant run-in at the beach, teenagers Oscar and Iben are left behind by their friends. When one of them makes a friendly gesture, they experience what might be the beginning of an unexpected friendship.
While writer/director Eivind Landsik does broach the topic of young male masculinity in his film Tits, it isn’t what drives the film forward. In fact, as we see in the 12 minute short, it is the after effects of that toxicity that makes the film work as well as it does. It is less toxic male masculinity and more about insecurities that we have in our teenage years.
What Tits does highlight is the need to impress or do what others think they should be doing. Iben, for example, is full of hormones and believes or has been made to believe by her peers that she should be doing what she can to keep the interest of Jonas. She is so wrapped up in these needs she has she fails to see how poor a choice Jonas is. We, in retrospect, discover how little real interest he has in Iben as those remarks at the beginning of Tits make more sense. So, by the time we see him fob off Iben mid-intimacy, we know their journey together is not one that will end well.
Whereas Oscar is in a situation where he is trying to battle his insecurities to be like his friends, only he isn’t as slim or athletic as them, and so he tries to cover up said differences. He wants to be a part of the friend group, but, as we see in some of Andreas Bjørseth’s gorgeously bright shots, he is always distant. Never fully with that group. As they all run and jump into the water, no one is calling for him. When he gets out, they are almost already gone. No matter how hard he tries, he doesn’t quite fit their mould. He and Iben are on differing sides of the coin, but significantly, they form the same coin.
You fear midway through Tits that it is, in fact, going to be a film about the treatment of our protagonists, especially when Oscar is left behind because he wanted to get changed in private and Iben’s clothes are taken. Instead, it takes a more natural turn, with both forgotten teenagers finding solace with each other, connecting properly for the first time, and seeing that maybe they do not need to be as desperate for the positive responses of those less inclined to care about them.
It could have been so easy for Eivind Landsik to keep this story focussed on Iben or Oscar, as it would have still been interesting. But by combining both stories, we get to see the insecurities both characters have slowly wash away the more they get to know one another. Iben gets to see that not all boys are like Jonas, and Oscar gets to see that not all people care about looks and that personality, especially kindness, is a far greater quality.
Tits is a wonderfully sympathetic tale of finding friendship at the right time in your young life and be. A pleasing glance that isn’t as straightforward as you would expect. Both Snore Kind Monsson (Oscar) and Marie Bya (Iben) are given moments to shine, and they bring a tenderness to their situation that you can immediately relate to—an ode to growing up that leaves a smile on your face by the end.
★★★ 1/2
The 19th HollyShorts Film Festival is running between 10th – 20th August with in person and digital screenings available through the 10th to 27th August.
For more information go to www.hollyshorts.com
Coverage of HollyShorts Film Festival 2023:
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