Tag Archives: David Dencik

Regression (2015)

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Regression
Director: Alejandro Amenábar
Writer: Alejandro Amenábar
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Emma Watson, David Thewlis, David Dencik, Aaron Ashmore, Aaron Abrams, Devon Bostick, Dale Dickey, Adam Butcher, Lothaire Bluteau
Seen on: 18.10.2015

Plot:
Angela (Emma Watson) has accused her father John (David Dencik) of abusing and raping her. While Angela remains at the church where she sought refuge, police detective Bruce (Ethan Hawke) tries to figure it out. But John claims to have no recollection of ever assaulting Angela. So Bruce looks to psychology professor Kenneth (David Thewlis) for help. Kenneth suggest hypnotic regression therapy to figure out what is going on. Soon Bruce finds himself deep into a farreaching network of satanistic abuse.

I suspect that I would have liked Regression if the general plot development hadn’t been so completely clear to me from the start. Although even so it wouldn’t have been completely unproblematic.

regression

[SPOILERS]

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The Homesman (2014)

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The Homesman
Director: Tommy Lee Jones
Writer: Tommy Lee Jones,Kieran Fitzgerald, Wesley A. Oliver
Based on: Glendon Swarthout‘s novel
Cast: Tommy Lee Jones, Hilary Swank, Grace Gummer, Miranda Otto, Sonja Richter, David Dencik, William Fichtner, Jesse Plemons, John Lithgow, Tim Blake Nelson, James Spader, Hailee Steinfeld, Meryl Streep
Seen on: 06.01.2015

Plot:
At the very west of the settling effort in the USA, three women (Grace Gummer, Miranda Otto, Sonja Richter) have a psychotic break and there are no options for help in the settlements and their husbands (David Dencik, William Fichtner, Jesse Plemons) are partly overwhelmed and partly cruel, but generally of not much use. Reverend Dowd (John Lithgow) suggest that the women should be taken back east to get some help, and the only one willing to do that is Mary Bee Cuddy (Hilary Swank) who is trying to build her life in the west on her own. Mary Bee stumbles upon George Briggs (Tommy Lee Jones) who has been left to hang, and saves his life, but demands that he come with her to bring the women to safety. And so the five of them set off on the dangerous trek, despite the general unwillingness of everybody involved but Mary Bee.

The Homesman could have been a good film, if it hadn’t been for George Briggs and the movie’s obsession with him.

the-homesman[SPOILERS]

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Serena (2014)

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Serena
Director: Susanne Bier
Writer: Christopher Kyle
Based on: Ron Rash‘s novel
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Rhys Ifans, David Dencik, Charity Wakefield, Sam Reid, Toby Jones, Sean Harris, Blake Ritson, Christian McKay
Seen on: 04.01.2015 [cornholio suggested I add that info to my posts, let me know what you think.]

Plot:
George Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) has a successful timber business and things seem to work out perfectly when he meets Serena (Jennifer Lawrence) on a trip. They fall in love and get married quickly and when George brings Serena back home, she immediately gets involved in the business, into which she has some insight. But not everybody is so happy about the new alliance and the intensity of George’s and Serena’s relationship also proves difficult.

Serena starts off well enough but then it pretty much implodes, leaving me feeling like it didn’t actually know what story it wanted to tell in the first place.

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En kongelig affære [A Royal Affair] (2012)

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En kongelig affære
Director: Nikolaj Arcel
Writer: Rasmus Heisterberg, Nikolaj Arcel
Based on: Bodil Steensen-Leth’s novel Prinsesse af blodet
Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Alicia Vikander, David Dencik, Trine Dyrholm, Thomas W. Gabrielsson, Laura Bro, Cyron Bjørn Melville

Plot:
Princess Caroline Mathilde (Alicia Vikander) gets married to King Christian (Mikkel Boe Følsgaard) and is sent from England to Denmark. When the two of them meet for the first time, Caroline quickly realizes that Christian is quite mad. Understandably, marital bliss is not forthcoming and the situation only relaxes a little bit when Christian starts traveling. During his trip he finds a new doctor, companion, guard and friend in Johann Struensee (Mads Mikkelsen) and brings him back home. When Struensee and Caroline meet, they connect over their revolutionary political views – a fact that changes Denmark drastically.

This film is pretty damn fantastic. Mikkel Boe Følsgaard is really good, the history is interesting but it mostly lives off the amazing chemistry that Mads Mikkelsen and Alicia Vikander have together and the way the relationship between Caroline and Johann is build. It was just brilliant to watch.

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Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

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Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Director: Tomas Alfredson
Writer: Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan
Based on: John le Carré‘s novel
Cast: Gary Oldman, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Toby Jones, David Dencik, Ciarán Hinds

Plot:
Control (John Hurt), head of the British Intelligence, suspects that there is a double agent very high up the ladder in “the Circus.” So he sends Jim Prideaux (Mark Strong) to Hungary to meet a source who can reveal the identity of the mole. But things go wrong, Prideaux gets shot and Control and his right hand George Smiley (Gary Oldman) have to retire. But then the agent Ricki Tarr (Tom Hardy) also brings the info about a double agent and Smiley gets hauled out of retirement to find said agent.

I was so looking forward to this film. I mean – look at that cast! What more could you wish for? [Except for a few women.] Unfortunately the movie ended up being so incredibly boring, I don’t even have words. Also, the brown, the brown! It kinda started hurting my eyes after a while.

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Broderskab [Brotherhood] (2009)

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[identities.]

Brotherhood is Nicolo Donato‘s first film, written by himself and Rasmus Birch, starring Thure Lindhardt, David Dencik and Nicolas Bro.

Plot:
Lars (Thure Lindhardt) was just dismissed from the army because of rumors that he was gay. Now he doesn’t really know what to do with himself. By chance he stumbles into a group of neonazis. Their leader Fatty (Nicolas Bro) sees that Lars shows a lot of promise, so when Lars falls out with his parents, he pounces: He tells Lars he can stay with Jimmy (David Dencik) who is renovating a house for the group. But then Lars and Jimmy fall in love.

Brotherhood is a strong movie, particularly for a debut. There are some weaknesses in the plot but that is more than made up for by the differentiated approach to both Lars and Jimmy’s relationship with each other and even more so their relationship with the neonazi group.

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