MRM: "A Man Called Ove" v. "A Man Called Otto"

“A Man Called Ove” was one of my favorite reads this year, so I decided to watch “A Man Called Otto,” the book’s movie adaptation. Here is how I think they compare.

“A Man Called Ove” is a 2012 novel by Swedish author Fredrik Backman. In it, a grouchy old man rules his small housing development, determined that things should remain exactly as they should be. 

However, he is also struggling with the loss of his wife and has lost his will to live. He attempts to take his life several times over the course of the novel, but he is always stopped by his increasingly annoying neighbors, who have immigrated to Sweden from Iran. 

Ove begrudgingly becomes more personally involved with the family. He helps fix things, teaches the mother, Parvaneh, to drive and babysits the children. Ove also makes amends with his former-best-friend-turned-enemy, reunites a gay son and intolerant father and helps a boy impress a girl.

As Ove becomes more involved in the lives of others, his heart opens up, and he regains his purpose and love for life. The novel is excellent in its deliverance of love, grief, found family and togetherness. 

“A Man Called Otto,” a 2022 film based on the novel, was retrofitted to reflect current American culture. While many details were changed, “Otto” still carries the core integrity of the novel while simultaneously reaching its new American audience.

With Tom Hanks as the star, the movie is set in America instead of Sweden, with Otto driving a Chevrolet instead of Ove’s characteristic Saab. Additionally in the movie, Otto’s neighbors are Latin-American instead of Iranian.

Unfortunately, the film does not stay committed to Otto’s grouchiness, as Backman does in “Ove." This causes Otto’s character development to resonate less with the audience. The film also misses large pieces of backstory from “Ove,” preventing us from understanding Otto’s motivations.

Another theme missing from the film is Ove/Otto’s closeness with Parvaneh/Marisol’s family. In “Ove,” the children are a major part of Ove’s character development, and Ove forms a grandfatherly bond with them. In the film, the children suddenly start calling him grandpa, without any real explanation.

The film does change the ending of “Ove” from sad to heartwarming. While “Ove” is bittersweet, “Otto” is touching. “Otto” still packs the emotional punch that “Ove” does, and it leaves you feeling happier than the novel does. 

However, I feel that adapting “Ove” into a feel-good movie was a mistake. While “Otto” is a neat two hours long, I believe that a bit more runtime would’ve given “Ove” its justice and still done well among American audiences.