40-year-old Elling, sensitive, would-be poet, is sent to live in a state institution when his mother, who has sheltered him his entire life, dies. There he meets Kjell Bjarne, a gentle giant and female-obsessed virgin, also in his 40s.
Elling is a Norwegian Black comedy film directed by Petter Næss. Shot mostly in and around the Norwegian capital Oslo, the film, which was released in 2001, is primarily based on Ingvar Ambjørnsen's novel Brødre i blodet, one of a series of four featuring the Elling character – the others are Utsikt til paradiset, Fugledansen, and Elsk meg i morgen. The film was followed by an original prequel not based on any of the novels, Mors Elling (2003), and a sequel, Elsk meg i morgen (2005) based on the fourth and last book in the series.