Relationships are inherently uncertain. Whether it’s where it will go in the future, what the other person is thinking, or whether priorities are truly aligned, no one can ever be certain that love will last. It is learning to be comfortable with the unpredictability of love that often brings the greatest freedom, but if the answers to all those questions were suddenly at your fingertips, would you want to know? And is there a risk that knowing too much might do more harm to your relationship than being kept in the dark?
As Stockholm’s most successful couples therapist, psychologist Ava (Sara Shirpey) is in demand and at the top of her game, with an unparalleled knack for getting to the heart of relationship problems. She is the envy of her peers and is trusted by couples seeking clarity around some of love’s more complex and elusive questions. Though it could be her natural aptitude or her expert training that has ensured Ava’s success, she also has a secret that could change not only the lives of her clients, but her own as well.
Ava (Sara Shirpey) at work. Credit: Josephine Owe
In the six-episode series Out of Touch, Ava’s secret is revealed to be an unexpected skill. Since the age of 16, after suffering her first rejection and navigating the subsequent heartbreak, Ava was given an otherworldly power: by simply placing her hand on a person’s chest, she can see a detailed vision of their love life, with all its complications, triumphs and disappointments. As a psychologist, it’s an ability that has proved to be a blessing, but on a personal level, it’s been something of a curse. Having seen the emotional toll that romantic relationships can take, Ava has sworn off searching for long-term love in her own life.
Set in Stockholm, the Swedish language rom-com follows Ava as she attempts to keep this supernatural ability under wraps. To avoid seeing anything about her own love life, and to prevent knowing complicating information about the relationships of those close to her, Ava limits any future checking to the consult room. Only her best friend and fellow therapist, Mikaela (Sanna Sundqvist), is in the loop about the source of her success, and not even her slightly oblivious colleague and loveable office matchmaker, Markus (Christer Fant) has figured out her secret. Likwise, the couples she helps are none wiser that the therapist sitting across from them really does have all the answers.
Ava has everything under control professionally and personally, successfully keeping her romantic dalliances casual, until the arrival of her new colleague, John (Hannes Fohlin). From their initial meeting, John turns Ava’s carefully constructed life upside down, taking her regular table at the local cafe, and then turning up as the newest resident of the spare office in her practice. Ava finds herself inexplicably drawn to John and a brief interaction in the staff kitchen sees Ava given an unexpected glimpse into a love life she has spent her career avoiding: her own.
Ava (Sara Shirpey) with John (Hannes Fohlin). Credit: Breakable Films
The insight she has trusted implicitly to this point has now become a truth she cannot be sure of, and John represents a potential reality for Ava that is exciting and daunting in equal measure. The possibility of what might be means that she now has something to lose, and a life she wasn’t even sure she wanted is suddenly all she can think about. It doesn’t help that Markus is intent on ensuring the two explore their feelings for one another, playing workplace cupid in a scenario where one target is skilfully dodging arrows every chance she gets.
With her curiosity piqued, however, and the strict boundary between her personal and professional life now blurred, Ava finds herself in an awkward position, not only with John, but with those she cares about most. Mikaela and her fiancé, Mona (Marall Nasiri), are the picture of commitment until Mikaela is forced to consider that a seven-year relationship is no guarantee of future happiness. With her best friend plagued by what-ifs, Ava knows she is able to set the record straight, but is met with resistance, and the clarity that those in relationships often crave is shown to be a burden in disguise. The temptation to look into her future with John at every stage rather than letting things unfold also becomes a double-edged sword, and Ava is torn between pursuing a meaningful relationship and protecting herself.
Out of Touch questions the role of fate in love and reminds us of the often-forgotten power of choice in helping relationships go the distance. As Ava learns that she does not have to be at the mercy of a predestined reality, but at the same time comes to accept that she is deserving of the happiness she wants for her clients, she begins to see her gift in a new light. The joy of love, it seems, is in the not-knowing, even when the future, and all that it promises, are seemingly clear.
Out of Touch is streaming at SBS On Demand.
Stream free On Demand
Out of Touch
series • Comedy drama • Swedish
MA15+
series • Comedy drama • Swedish
MA15+
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