Night Games (Nattlekar)

Night Games opens up to a scene where the protagonist, Samir (Dylan Kjellin), is playing with his action figures. The hero just so happens to represent himself, and Samir carries this action figure wherever he goes.

The film follows Samir throughout the course of one night of his life. His alcoholic and gambling addict father, Farhad (Simon Mezher), hasn’t come home, and his mother, Zara (Josefine Wistedt) is waiting for him in bed. A shot of Samir outside his parents’ bedroom, looking in as his mother wrestles with her emotions, is a poignant turning point. When she tells him to close the door, he obeys her. But that doesn’t stop him from taking matters into his own hands.

What is a young boy to do when his addict father hasn’t come home, and his mother is sobbing in bed waiting for her husband? He uses his imagination.

The devices used in this film are simple, but their implications are deep and very moving. With the flourish of a makeshift cape, Samir is now a superhero, on a mission to rescue his father from the “bad guys” and bring him home. While the cape represents Samir’s superhero status, it has also given him the superpower of invisibility, which he uses to manipulate first his father into getting on a bicycle to come home, then his mother to try and get her not to take what is assumed to be sleeping pills.

His mother swallowing the pills anyway despite his attempts to stop her, is another vital turning point in the short film. Samir is left with no other choice but to brandish his secret weapon: a bread knife. With the power of his imagination, the bread knife transforms into a samurai sword, and he uses it to slay all the villains keeping his father away.

When his father does come home in real life, it is not quite the homecoming Samir is expecting. As his parents fight, he throws a tantrum and tosses his action figurines around the room. Then he goes to bed, and it seems like he has given up on his superhero shenanigans entirely.

Dylan Kjellin, who plays Samir, does a wonderful job of portraying a young boy with an overactive imagination. The way he plays a precocious child, who is willing to stop at nothing to bring his father home, shows just how talented this young actor is.

When he discovers a bus pass in his father's coat pocket, Samir is happy that his ‘night games’ were able to successfully bring his father home. The film ends on a happy note despite the dark themes of abuse, addiction, and violence running throughout.

Petter Bulling, the Director of Photography, does a remarkable job with the cinematography. Close-up shots of the actors’ faces show their wide range of emotions. Through the powerful lens of the cinematographer, the story unfolds and is shaped by the striking camera angles and shots that convey a young boy’s desire to bring his addict father back home and into his mother’s arms. Together with the help of the actors and an amazing crew, director Emil T. Jonsson’s vision is realized.

The 2024 Swedish film is based on a short story by Stig Dagerman and is inspired by the director’s own childhood. Winner of multiple awards, Night Games stands out as an emotional tour de force with its incredible cinematography and fantastic storytelling. Told through the lens of an innocent, the high-stakes and driving force of the drama will surely leave viewers feeling sated by the end of the film.