In what could be the most unhinged, and relatable, film title of the year, How to Be Normal and the Oddness of the Other World begins with a question all to familiar to the coming of age story and what makes it relatable, how can I be normal? After leaving a psychiatric hospital, Pia returns to her parents house, feeling out of place in what used to be home, as she attempts to reintegrate into a world that is nothing but odd to her and everything seems out of control. Approaching the subject matter like mental illness in the modern world, coming-of-age, and identity, it maintains a fresh exploration of the topics at hand.

Pia, recently released from a psychiatric hospital, has returned home to find a world that is out of control. Struggling to maintain her mental health as she reintegrates into a world that has not accepted her, she slowly slips back into old habits and mentalities that hold her back from truly connecting to this new, odd world. As she reunites with old friends and ex-boyfriends, her question of how to be normal in this other world is quickly forced into a new question, of why won’t the world help anyone but those who they deem as “normal” at all?

There is quite a unique portrayal of mental illness on screen, and the technical aspects really lend themselves to the filmmaker’s attempts at portraying Pia’s state of mind in ways outside of just character. Harsh cuts, unique cinematography involving grainy shots and aspect ratios that make us feel like we are watching a movie inside a movie, we see Pia’s distance from her old world through these choices and what they mean when Pia begins to see the world from a lens that is outside of what we have come to expect in a dramatic film. We watch the world of the film through a distant lens, one articulated to us through this unique style, and one that helps us feel as out of place as Pia does.

There are also quite cool tone shifts that work to build tension as the film progresses, without ever feeling weighed down by the real tension at the heart of Pia’s devastating story. Her dark and self deprecating humour still work to make viewers laugh, lightening up the otherwise darker story that we are surrounded by. It is surprisingly funny, despite its subject matter, and I think a lot of this comes from a large recognition we have as viewers of this experience, wanting to be normal in a world that is anything but that.

On top of these technical aspects really strongly lending themselves to creating this unique tonal balance, actress Luisa-Céline Gaffron stunningly portrays Pia and her experience with mental illness in todays world. She understands Pia in her portrayal, casting a mirror onto the audience where young people won’t be able to help but to see themselves reflected in her raw portrayal of this struggling woman. Her performance lends itself to the genre bending film, perfectly capturing both the comedic and dramatic aspects of the film, as well as the completely absurd of the world around us.

The only downfall of the film is that sometimes its unique approach in its technical aspects does not all come together in the end. The blending of genres is a fresh way to explore the films themes, but sometimes near the end feels like all that is happening is weighing down the overall story. Don’t get me wrong, what works here really works. But it does become slightly fatiguing to watch by the end with all of the boundaries it pushes, which was maybe the filmmaker’s intention all along, to reflect even a fraction of what Pia has been feeling for what we can only assume has been her whole life.

How to Be Normal and the Oddness of the Other World is the latest addition to the coming of age, modern world deconstructing film that follows Pia, after she has been sent home from a psychiatric hospital to live with her parents. Genre bending, though sometimes fatiguing to watch, this exploration of Pia’s state of mine and her journey of how to be normal in a world that has done nothing to help her is sure to help viewers themselves see their own journey’s reflected on screen, living in the modern world, with no support, when you feel anything but ordinary.

How to Be Normal and the Oddness of the Other World was screened at the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival.