Written by Øystein Karlsen & Jo Nesbø

So Long, Marianne is real; human and intimate, lung-busting, gut-wrenching, heart-breaking love story. Though it's a story looking back at extraordinary lives, it's more than that; much more. It’s a story of youth, searching and finding meaning in life; a story of expression, the sacrifices life forces you to make, and purity of love and of voice. The story of two very specific normal people. 

Marianne Ihlen is the living embodiment of the issues around female equality; growing up in a time when women were taught to be submissive, Marianne never towed that line. She refused to be a "good girl", refused to be what society and her parents demanded she be. It’s no accident Leonard Cohen and Axel Jensen, two great twentieth century writers, were drawn to her and each found their voice when with Marianne.

Leonard Cohen is a different matter. His life is a wake-up call for the ever-growing number of people who believe a normal job is beneath their dignity; these people completely unenlightened as to what it costs to make a career. Cohen worked hard from the age of 15 until he broke through at 32. Along the way, he almost succumbed several times: Leonard’s is the story of a man who had it all: looks, charm, talent, but who felt inadequate almost all his life. 

So long Marianne is a love story that takes us from the idyllic Hydra in Greece to winter in Oslo and Montreal. A love story that produced one of the greatest cultural icons of our age: a beautiful, poetic, searing tribute to life.