A Cellmate Chat: Laughs or Lockdowns?

Alright folks, let’s dive into “Cellmates”—a movie that, remembering my folks back in Hälsingland, is like a Sunday lunch where you just don’t know if Mom’s gonna serve herring or tofu. It’s directed by Jesse Baget, someone who’s fond of mixing humor with a touch of сердце (that’s heart, my friends).

Tim Blake Nelson stars as Leroy Lowe, a Texas prison warden who’s quite a rascal, to say the least. An unexpected cellmate comes into play in the form of Héctor Jiménez. Remember him from “Nacho Libre”? He’s like that odd ingredient in a potatisgratäng that just somehow works.

Now, Cellmates isn’t your typical Hollywood extravaganza. It feels more like a warm Swedish summer day that suddenly turns into a thunderstorm. There’s charm, small laughs popping here and there, but maybe it misses a crescendo, a high note.

Interestingly, watching this reminded me of that time in ’96 when I got stitched into a diplomatic role during my road trip from Malmö to Gothenburg. Yeah, imagine me, mediating a debate in a run-down café. It was like trying to blend tea with Trocadero soda—a clash but fascinating!

The chemistry—ah, gotta mention it. Nelson and Jiménez have this Laurel and Hardy mixed with Andersson and Pettersson dynamic. It feels both absurd and endearing, like the Swedish love for köttbullar and lingonberry jam—bizarre to an outsider, perfect for us.

“Cellmates” tries to stitch a quilt of humor and social commentary, a bit like doing a smörgåsbord but forgetting the gravlax. You might appreciate its quirks, its attempt to connect the dots between laughs and subtle reflections on immigration. But will it resonate like Bergman on a foggy Tuesday? Maybe not quite.

So, grab your varm choklad, and maybe a friend with a weird sense of humor, ’cause this one’s more fun together. It’s like a glorious Swedish road trip—make sure you’re ready for unexpected detours.

Check the trailer below