This movie showed just about all the dynamics that come into play, when dealing with a family business, as we’ve been discussing so far in class. It showed the relationship between children and their parents and how that can be conflicted by the introduction of a family owned steel business. This just made me rethink that maybe allowing my family to be a part of the management team may not be the best idea in the world. I’m not sure I would want to risk the peace and support a family is supposed to provide for the sake of the company. It seemed as though it can lead to family members, such as Annelise and Aksel, harboring some major issues over the years.
At the beginning of the movie, Aksel seemed distant when addressing his son and his son `s wife. He came over for a surprise visit and began getting sentimental. He referenced Christoffer being a part of the business as ‘the dream.” After watching the movie in its entirety, I can’t help but believe this was the start of a cycle that, once entered, it is extremely hard to exit. Aksel seemed a bit envious of the carefree life his son made for himself. He stated that his son left the business on his own accord rather than being kicked out. He also stressed the importance of Maria being a nurturing wife to his son. This could perhaps be because Annelise didn’t seem to be the nurturing type at all. It is unfortunate to say, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she is the cause of him committing suicide. Also, I think it is significant to show how the father chose to visit his son rather than his daughter one last time before killing himself. I think that may be because talking to someone who isn’t a part of the business and can provide conversation about other important things in life may be something comforting for a stressed out businessman. He probably wanted to spend his last moments stress-free.
Annelise is first shown in the funeral parlor at which point you can begin to see that she is the brains behind the operations of the company. For a brief moment, we are shown a family meeting where the mother makes the decision that Christoffer, their son, will announce Aksel`s death to the employees. It shows her dictatorship type of personality. Later on, we see her again in a meeting with what I believe is an advisory board member, Nils, and her son. Her way of imposing her views onto others without even taking a second thought as to how they may see the situation is horrible. She personified all the negative stereotypes of a family business. She showed nepotism when choosing the next director of the company and was making business decisions based on her being a partner in the business rather than based on the effects on the family.
I agree that this movie is sort of discouraging since we see all the negative aspects of being involved in a family business. Having family members involved in your business might destroy the relationship you have with them and it might not be worth it. I wish we knew more details on how the family business was doing before the father committed suicide. Maybe we would understand the mother’s actions and her character a bit more. I didn’t put much thought into the last interaction Aksel had with his son but I might have been a way for Aksel to find comfort seeing that his son didn’t need the business to fulfill any of his needs. Good pick up!
I also agree with everything you said Nancy. Your point that I agreed the most is that Annelise’s dictatorship style personality. It is the most probable cause of the actions taken by each characters in the movie. Although she doesn’t have a lot of exposure in the film, the audience could easily point out that her character “controls” all the people’s decision and actions on the story.
I loved that you showcased the last conversation between father and son. I really did not give it that much of importance when as you pinpointed, it sets up our understanding of the movie in its entirety. Could it be that in his own way, the father was trying to warn his son not to take let business take over his life and be miserable? He seemed successful, but not happy about the turn of his life and it was not very surprising to understand his death after seeing and enduring his wife during the movie.