Detective Downs

Snappy graphics and a plaintive jazz score mark the opening of this nouveau Norwegian noir. Our world-weary detective is kitted out in trench coat and fedora, his voiceover reminiscent of Bogey’s. But Robert Bogerud is a different kind of private eye, one with Down syndrome. Business is rotten in Robert’s office in the Ladybird group home; he wants to solve cases like his policeman dad. One day, a leggy blonde named Rita shows up in Robert’s doorway. Her husband, speed-skating champion Olav Starr, has disappeared, and the family wants help finding him. Robert’s unorthodox sleuthing methods include moving into the Starr household to find out how Olav feels. Rita and her bratty adult children are up to something, their relationships so damaged that maybe not even Robert’s hugs can cure them. DETECTIVE DOWNS is a remarkable film that puts a differently-abled detective front and center. While exposing people’s prejudices—and murderous tendencies—it takes solace in the old-fashioned virtues of love and family. (In Norwegian with subtitles) —B.B.