12 Chapters, 1 Confused Heroine — What Keeps 'The Worst Person in the World' So Close to the Bone

Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World isn’t just a coming-of-age film — it’s a quietly devastating, often funny, and deeply humane meditation on love, timing, and figuring things out far too late (or maybe just in time?). Set in Oslo and told across twelve beautifully structured chapters, it follows Julie, a woman in her late twenties drifting through relationships, careers, and her own uncertainty. She's not actually the worst person, of course — just someone trying to get it right. Aren’t we all?

The film runs for just over two hours, and every minute feels lived-in. Whether Julie’s pausing time to chase a romantic whim or navigating uncomfortable truths with unexpected tenderness, her story is as specific as it is universal. Trier’s script — co-written with long-time collaborator Eskil Vogt — doesn’t moralise or dramatise unnecessarily. Instead, it lets Julie be complex: sometimes selfish, sometimes brave, often lost. Renate Reinsve’s performance (which won Best Actress at Cannes) is both raw and magnetic.

If you’re wondering where to watch it — in the UK, it’s available on MUBI and other digital platforms. The film is in Norwegian with subtitles, but language barely feels like a barrier here. What matters is what’s unspoken — and Trier knows how to let silences breathe. And yes, there’s that ending: no spoilers, but it’s not about 'who she ends up with'. It’s about who she becomes.

So why that title? That’s for you to decide. But chances are, if you’ve ever questioned everything at once — love, work, your place in the world — you’ll find something painfully familiar in Julie’s journey.