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Some films are weighed down by poor scripts, some by poor direction and some by poor casting. This and its sequel wasn't just weighed down but sunk by all of the above.

Working from a script he helped pen, Anders Refn showed there's a reason why he hasn't undertaken such grand projects earlier on in his career. Mostly known as Lars von Trier's editor, here Refn puts himself forth with a pair of hugely ambitious films - the tale of occupied Denmark by Nazi Germany in WWII.

We're thrown into the story just as the central and upper crust family's patron and matron are to celebrate their twenty-five years of marriage which, unfortunately, coincides with the occupation of Denmark. And so, what we get is a yarn; an attempt at telling an epic story of how this family is thrown into chaos by the events as they would unfold during the next five years.

You can tell the director's intentions were good; that Refn wanted this film to happen presumably for some time. Unfortunately, that didn't help him. Because what we get is a film from a script so overcooked and explicit it never feels cinematic or epic. We get constant breaks in whatever flow Refn does manage to stage. We get characters that are so inconsistent I at times wondered if they were meant to be different roles and where perhaps the same actor had accidentally played both. In one scene you'd see a character berate her husband for being too close to the Nazis, only for her to admonish another for being critical of the same nazis in the very next scene! It's so over the top amateurish that it instantly kills any engagement you might have felt before. And I say might, because it's very much in doubt you would feel all that much for the story or these cardboard cut-out characters. And even when characters aren't arbitrarily contradicting themselves from one scene to the next, they are given such poor dialog it's beyond embarrassing to watch it unfold! At times it feels like we're watching a first day rehearsal of a local amateur theater production. It's that hammed up!

There are actors in these films who've proven themselves time and again. But it's clear that even the best of them are struggling. Jesper Christensen is a wonderful actor, so it isn't surprising that his scenes are the ones which flow most naturally but even then, he's fighting a lost cause. The dialogue constantly rings false. Far too many things are explicated, far too little left unsaid and communicated cinematically - visually.

And it's clear there are far too many characters for this to ever have become a tight telling of what is a fascinating subject matter even all these years later. Refn constantly rushes from one scene to the next, from one character arc to the next without ever establishing why these people act as they do or why we should care. Characters move in and out of the story, some get killed off - I even caught myself feeling relieved as that might have left more oxygen for the remaining characters - others again seem to disappear without a trace or an explanation. So, we're left with this clunky break-neck speed. Start, no stop. Run, no stroll. Hurry, but go slow. There's absolutely no rhythm. Characters die, leave, fall in love, fall out of love, make choices entirely motivated by plot needs, and it all makes for a very awkward film.

I'm left feeling two things. Firstly, that Anders Refn is an editor and not a writer nor director, and secondly that this should never have been two feature films, but instead two seasons of 6 episodes a pop, each episode with its own tight story arc. That would have left plenty of room and oxygen for all these many characters to unfold and expose their motivations properly.

If there's one upside, and that's a stretch, really, then it's that Refn's strange choices mean we avoid one of those over sentimental paint-by-the-numbers war films there are entirely too many of as it is. However poor and awkward this film is, its awkwardness means we do avoid any Hollywood pretentions. I suppose sometimes that is, well, something.

Imagine a somewhat dark sanatorium in the countryside. A big villa, pristine yet it somehow still feels dilapidated. Perhaps it's the inhabitants rather than the house itself that ooze a sense of something not quite at its peak; something a bit run down. Perhaps it's the northern fall weather that gives off that dank and dark fall feeling that creeps in and settles in a foreboding mood. Whatever it is, we get tons of it in this wonderful scary-old-house-in-the-woods film.

Detailing the plot of these kind of films isn't necessarily all that important. What is important is that the mystery can uphold the tension and that the actors, cinematography, score and set design can create the kind of mood that is essential for a light horror film like this. So, does Methling et al, succeed? The answer is a resounding yes!

When Methling was on point he could create these often-overlooked cinematic nuggets of gold. Fem og Rosa is another great example, although not a horror but a heist flick, there too Methling hits it out of the park.

Helle Virkner in the character of Betina, the niece of well-to-do uncle Theodor who finances the santorium that is the center of our film, is yet again a tad bit over the top but yet somehow wonderfully effective as the slightly nervous but otherwise solid straight man in this mystery horror. Virkner is the center of the proceedings - the plot crank pin which we rely on to move things along. Because someone is out to get her. So, when her uncle turns up dead, this someone makes Betina the fall guy. Or attempts to, because Betina has an ace up her sleeve or rather two - sisters in fact, played by Maria Garland and Else-Marie which means we're in for a treat. One a wit so sharp Miss Marple might have cut herself on it; the other sassy and given to this world with fingers so nimble anything in her vicinity might go missing. And with these two heavy weights in Betina's corner, our killer has their work cut out for them.

The film's gallery of characters is in general perhaps a bit on the nose with doctors, lawyers, careers and last but not least the patients whose ailments is perhaps difficult to understand could be helped in this isolated locale away from the world, but there we are. But no matter as that isn't all that important and as we get actors such as Arthur Jens, Bjørn Puggaard-Müller and Lars Lunøe to bring these stereotypes to life, we quickly understand we're in good and competent hands. These stalwarts of Danish cinema won't fumble the ball.

Yes, Methling knows what he's doing. Having penned the script himself, he'd have no-one but himself to blame if things didn't stack up. Well, they do. Very much so. From casting to the score by the underappreciated but genius Ole Høyer to the competent cinematography all in black and white, we're always in safe hands. Always along for the ride and what a great and lovely ride it is.

This is the kind of film I'd wish there were more of. A film that is best viewed with a bit of longing; a bit of nostalgia for something you're not quite sure of what is. But you know this one will scratch that nostalgic itch for you. If you let that is. I suggest you do.

If you were to ask one hundred Danes about their favorite top one hundred Danish films, chances are they'd mention a fair share of the same films. And a great deal of those will probably star Dirch Passer, Ove Sprogøe and Ghita Nørby and have been made mainly in the sixties. It's strange, then, that you can be fairly sure none or at least very, very few of those asked would mention this film. And I simply can't give good reason as to why.

You see, to me, this film is such a fine, little wonder. It's a classical sixties sex comedy, and it's as classically hypocritical as any from that age when it comes to gender and sex. If that bothers you, skip it. If, on the other hand, comedies from that age by such directors as Billy Wilder, Stanley Donen or Robert Mulligan are your thing, I suggest giving this one a chance.

The plot itself barely bears to be mentioned and really just serves as the base for a nice escapist venture in snowy Norway. Strøbye as the well-off Alan is tired of routines and his wife and her routines as well. His solution is as tired and trite as you might well imagine. An affair he's certain should be made permanent. To that end he needs out of his current marriage, but as he learns, that can be costly. So why not push her, gently, into the arms of a new lover that'll relieve him of any financial woes in a contentious divorce? And where better to meet such a man than on a nice holiday? And we're off on a ski holiday to lovely Norway.

Axel Strøbye never quite reached the career heights of Sprogøe, Passer or Nørby although he was their equal in every way, and here he once again proved it. His character is the crux of the story and Strøbye carries it off marvelously. Nørby and Sprogøe flanks him wonderfully, though, and it's in this trifecta that the film lives and breathes.

Sprogøe is perfect as the slightly caddish pharmacist who's on the prowl on the slopes while Nørby brings her effortless charm to a role that admittedly doesn't have that much gravitas. We're in luck, then, to have Nørby in the mix as any less than her extraordinary charisma could have sunk the film.

While the plot might be trite and seem flat on the outset, the script itself is better than you'd have thought. Because what we get is dialogue between these three masters of their craft that'll seduce and beguile if you let it. It's endlessly quotable, along with intonation and look. Again, the plot itself is not the strength of the film and as it ventures into farce, we do see the limits of the film and the direction. But that's forgivable as what we're given along the way is more than enough to carry it home.

The supporting cast is made up of stalwarts of Danish cinema of the time and as such more than lives up to the main players while having less to do. And as it was with such films back then, we even get two memorable songs - the theme song sung by Bundgaard and a wonderful crooner style piece by the competent crooner, Dario Campeotto.

I suggest watching this one on a lazy, rainy Sunday afternoon for an experience as nice and cozy as the locales of wintery Norway themselves.