NICE PEOPLE (Karin af Klintberg, Anders Helgeson). Subtitled. 91 minutes. Opens Friday (February 5). See listing. Rating: NNN
In 2013, the Swedish town of Borlänge did something unusual: it formed the Somalia National Bandy Team as a way of integrating the town’s Somalian community into the larger population.
Anders Helgeson and Karin af Klintberg explore that decision in their documentary Nice People, which takes its title from Borlänge’s official motto, “trevligt folk.” And like the team itself, it’s a little clumsy but has a good heart.
Forming a team and getting it to the 2014 Bandy World Championships in Irkutsk proves tricky, since bandy is basically ball hockey on ice and none of the Borlänge players has ever skated before. But everyone’s into it, and hustler/promoter Patrik Andersson and coach Per Fosshaug eventually bring in Somali-Canadian hockey player Anwar Hared (of the Aurora Tigers) to give them a competitive edge.
Helgeson and Klintberg can’t quite decide between dry humour and real drama, clumsily contrasting Andersson’s clueless vanity with the very real trauma of team members who were former child soldiers.
But the path to the championships creates its own momentum, and the story of teammate Ahmed Hussain, who left his mother behind in Somalia and wants nothing more than to see her again, provides a powerful emotional payoff.
