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Though Denmark is best known in the U.S. for the Dogme movement and for renowned director Lars von Trier, Danish filmmaking has emerged to reveal a remarkable breadth of work that crosses over from arthouse to genre and even animated fare. Although Danish cinema has always made a significant impact internationally, this year in particular features an explosive vintage with a high concentration of the best and most innovative work to be found anywhere in the world. For A Soap, her feature debut, Pernillle Fischer Christensen received two of the top prizes at the Berlin Film Festival. In what could have been a conventional story, her use of soap opera elements to guide us through the maze of gender identity makes it one of the most bizarre love stories to ever appear on screen. Annette K Olesen’s (SIFF Emerging Master 2004) timely new film, 1:1, deals with the relationship between ethnic Danes and Arab Muslim immigrants. Although produced before the recent cartoon controversy, the film is prophetic in its look at a Europe trying to maintain an equitable balance between clashing cultures and values. Behind the scenes, Kim Fupz Aakeson was the screenwriter of three of this year’s Danish films, and has certainly been one of the most productive Danish writers of the last few years, with credits that also include Annette K. Olesen’s earlier film Minor Mishaps. For those looking for an edgier evening, there is the gripping and ultra-violent gangster saga of Nicolas Winding Refn’s Pusher Trilogy. Unlike The Sopranos, here elements of family, compassion, loyalty and empathy are largely absent, with betrayal and vengeance the norm in all three films. We will also be presenting the first computer generated animated feature film from Denmark, Terkel in Trouble/ is a refreshingly nasty treat that reflects that uniquely Scandinavian wit and humor. These are just a few of the wide-ranging selections presented in this year’s spotlight.
Denmark, 2005, 90 min.
The love affair between a Danish girl and a Palestinian emigrant is rocked to its core when her brother is found beaten half to death and all suspicions point towards the local Arab community. Mistrust and racial animosity bubble to the surface in this tough drama about the lack of tolerance and und …
Denmark, 2005, 93 min.
A wicked black comedy about good and evil, Adam's Apples centers around a small country parish where convicts are sentenced to community service. When a vicious neo-Nazi named Adam arrives he is assigned to the parish’s pride-and-joy apple tree, which is immediately beset with ravens, worms a …
Denmark, 2005, 88 min.
In order to recover a secret from his past, a perfectionist piano maestro must enter “The Zone,” a mysterious section of Copenhagen where lost memories take on tangible shape. Christoffer Boe’s (Reconstruction) visually stunning, narratively crooked fantasy is a real trip, in every sense of t …
Keld is a struggling plumber whose wife of more than 25 years leaves him unexpectedly. On one of his nightly visits to a Chinese take-out joint, the owner makes him a business proposal that has results far beyond his wildest dreams, in this sweet and sour tale of love when it’s least expected. …
Denmark, 2005, 106 min.
Daniel is paid by the heartsick to graffiti declarations of love on walls near the objects of their affection, but his days of carefree life come to an end when he falls in love with a flighty bakery worker. Shot in hazy black-and-white in tribute to the New Wave films of the ’60s. …
Denmark, 2006, 78 min.
Emerging Master Nicolas Winding Refn found himself drowning in debt after the box-office failure of 2003’s Fear X, so he decided to produce two sequels to his cult hit Pusher. This documentary takes a painfully funny (and sometimes just painful) look at the treacherous balancing act be …
Denmark, 2005, 103 min.
A 50ish man and his young mistress—along with a slew of vividly-drawn characters—share a harrowing transference of guilt when she's involved in the death of a policeman. Director Per Fly sets his sites on the dark recesses of the Danish middle class with unrelenting intensity. …
Denmark, 1996, 105 min.
The opposite of THE SOPRANOS. In Nicolas Winding Refn’s debut feature, Frank and Tonny are small-time dealers about to maker the score of a lifetime, which involves increasing Frank’s debt to crime boss Milo. But their grand plan crumbles after a police bust, forcing Frank to scour the underworld fo …
Denmark, 2004, 98 min.
The first of two long-awaited sequels, PUSHER II begins with Tonny’s release from prison. He quickly discovers that he not only has a child but also an outstanding debt with his own father—prominent gangster “the Duke”—which forces him back into the underworld. …
Denmark, 2005, 105 min.
Five days into rehab for heroin addiction, Serbian crime boss Milo is preparing for his spoiled daughter’s 25th birthday party. Meanwhile, he’s gotten a shipment of ecstasy instead of heroin and a young Albanian gang is encroaching on his territory, in Refn’s powerful third installment. …
Denmark, 2005, 78 min.
A young Danish idealist fires up her antique plane and heads to Afghanistan after reading about an Afghan girl’s desire to become a pilot, in this astounding documentary. …
Denmark, 2005, 102 min.
Looking for love, willing to settle for lust, and feeling terrified when they find both, A SOAP explores the curious relationship between newly-single Charlotte and her promiscuous neighbor, the pre-op transsexual Ulrik (aka Veronica), in this highly unconventional soap opera. …
Denmark, 2004, 78 min.
It’s not easy being Terkel, an average foul-mouthed 12-year-old boy navigating mentally absent parents, schoolyard bullies, drunken uncles and accident-prone little sisters. Then he starts receiving anonymous death threats… The first CG animated feature film from Denmark, TERKEL IN TROUBLE is a refr …
The year is 1969 and change is in the air. Influenced by Martin Luther King Jr. and a groovy new teacher, thirteen-year-old Frits learns to stand up to authority and rock out, as he brings the counterculture movement to Denmark. …
