Erlösung

This is the third, and so far the best, film from Jussi Adler-Olsen's crime novels about the Department Q. The first "Kvinden i buret"/"The Keeper of Lost Causes" (2013) I rated 7/10, and was quite disappointed about the much more convoluted "Fasandreberne"/"The absent one" (2014), which I voted 5/10. Then I'm happy to say that this is a big step back from the last film directed by Mikkel Nørgaard.

Acclaimed Norwegian director Hans Petter Moland has taken over, and made a much more serious and darker Nordic noir.

The film is about a serial killer, acting as a cult leader. He kidnaps two children and demands ransom. But before this the Departemnt Q gets a case with a eight year old strange message found in a bottle. This is the start of an intense hunt.

The acting is superb, and mix with religion makes it very interesting. The film is slightly let down by being a lower budget production, though just from being a classic. it's still a very dark crime thriller.

Carl Morck (played by Nikolaj Lie Kaas) is very depressed and heavy minded. He makes his best role so far here. There is also a very strong acting performance by Pål Sverre Hagen, which does another psychopath here, just as in Moland's incredible "In order of disappearance"/"Kraftidioten". Once again a memorable role.

A well recommended Nordic noir.

This is the best of the three films in my opinion, it is not darker as such, off course the fact that its about kids getting taken is just not very nice to think about, but the cases they are working on are dark and we are beginning to know the characters and their different persona's and they really capture many great aspects of the characters and their interaction with other people.

I haven't read any of the books, but based on my wife's explanation, this is also the best adaption of the books, they are still changing things and making it more viewer friendly, but that's how it is.

Serial killers are always strange and dark, but this one is very well portrayed by Pål Sverre Hagen, he really seems like this nice guy, good looking (a Norwegian Ryan Gosling), well spoken, calm and trustworthy. But deep down he is just a bad bad man, with a terrible past and a twisted mind.

Location, seating & time: Dagmar, Nordisk Film, Vesterbro, Denmark - Bio 2, row 6 seat 1 & 3 - 22.03.2016 at 16.30

It might seem that there is a decline in the movies, but this is still rock solid. I can only imagine that the book is even more than that. It has characters from the previous movies (and books of course) and has a case that is pretty strong. You don't have the urgent feeling and the playfulness it had in the previous movies. As dark as they got, you always had something light in them.

That's almost missing entirely here. There's still character moments, but strings and things are being said and left on the sideline without giving them a resolution. It's a shame, but the movie is packed so much, that some things have not the punch they deserved to have and should have had. Still the movie and especially the villain are great. And it's not so much about who it is, but why he is and where and how to find him ...

This is the best chapter among the three, in my opinion. "Department Q" is a honest, low-flying franchise; it does few things, but does them very well. It's some kind of a very very good, 2-hours long tv episode. It keeps you hooked till the end (that's something very important in crime fiction), while entertaining you with good photography, good acting, and some tongue-in-cheek humor.

A special mention for the lead actor, that delivers an outstanding interpretation here, something worth of Hollywood in my opinion.

Recommended for a relaxing evening at home, it's fiction with no flaws. On a side note, some sequences in all three movies are violent or gory and can be disturbing to some.

I had high expectations for this third film - would it be as good as the two previous films?

I am delighted that it is. But different than the other two films. This film has more dialog between the two main characters, about they're personal life and faith. It brings more depths to the characters, and it does not come in the way of the story-line.

As the previous films, this haunting crime-film is all about the darkest and most twisted evil people, and they're terrible actions towards innocent people. In this film it also deals with children, so it's very gripping. As a Norwegian Im delighted to see Norwegians actors in this film, they really brings life to the film, acting in a convincing way. It even has a Norwegian director. But this it danish crime at it's very very best.

Well, if you like dark tales, this one is for you. Hope they follow this up with more films.