Denmark

Not really a comedy, but there are some funny moments. Filmmakers take note , this is John Cassavetes, ken Loach, Mike Leigh, John Sayles territory and its brilliant. You can make films like this for nothing, that are pitch perfect when describing the human condition. These kinds of films are really important. Anyone that has lived in Britain , in any of those depressed regions can relate to this film. I have gone through what the protagonist went through, and it is not for sissies. I watched this 3 nights ago and I have found myself reliving the scenes and dialog days later. This one stays with you. Everyone plays it well, the dog stole the show, and Rafe Spall is fabulous.

The movie starts in Wales where the protagonist is down and out. No job, his kid doesn't like him, his mum doesn't like him, he lives in an awful flat. He decides to go to Denmark to do a crime to get into a great jail that he saw on television. He gets there and goes to a bar and meets a female bartender. Also after that a dog follows him around. For no reason. He doesn't even have food. The female bartender befriends him. For no reason. He doesn't even have charisma. He tries to commit a crime. He can't. The bartender invites him to her mother's house to meet her and her daughter. For no reason. The whole movie is based on the man's point of view and through a man's imagination. No woman would act like the bartender.

Rafe Spall gives a memorable performance in this bittersweet fish-out-of-water comedy drama. It slowly dawns on me after 10 minutes that Adrian Shergold also helmed Funny Cow, one of the bleakest dramas of recent years. He's a master at constructing compelling dramas with characters trapped in joyless personal prisons. In this case it's Herb, a 34-year-old Welshman with a knack for fixing things. But he can't get a proper job, has an estranged son; he's lost his welfare; has a neighbour who plays incessant music, and Herb's diet consists mainly of cheap beer and mushy peas. Little wonder he's so depressed. After discovering Danish convicts live a luxurious life he could only dream of, Herb decides to travel across Europe with one goal: to get arrested and sent to a Danish prison. However, after meeting Mathilda, a local barmaid, and a lovable stray dog who won't leave his side, Herb realises that prison may not be his only chance to get the life he hoped for. Though the film could become a generic romcom, with Herb drifting into a ready made family, it's not quite so formulaic as that. As the tale unfolds, it's hard not to hope Herb will do the right thing, but he's a troubled soul. To paraphrase Springsteen, like a dog that's been beat too much, he's damaged by circumstances, and those wounds don't heal overnight. As with Funny Cow, Richard Hawley provides some terrific songs, and Jeff Murphy's script never strikes a false note. With a star-making turn from Simone Lykke as Mathilda, this really gets under the skin. At 91 minutes it never outstays its welcome, and the fact it left me hungry for more is testament to its success. Rafe Spall has long been one of showbusiness's most in-demand actors, and this is one of his finest turns to date. Highly recommended.

Loved it, it's not what I would class as a true comedy where the writer is trying to make the audience laugh out loud, it's a cute comedy and that's probably a bad attempt at trying to pigeon hole it. The amazing thing is though and somewhat spooky is I've often said to friends if I have nothing, no job, no home, no money, I would do exactly the same as what this guy attempted do only I would choose Norway because some prisons there the inmates have the luxury of cells which more or less fit the description of apartments. Sometime in the future I will watch it again and I if you get the chance I think you could a lot worse than to watch this also/

There's no real arc or story to speak of and in lesser hands this would have been a molten dumpster fire but Spall manages to drag it over the line with a decent supporting cast. If you're waiting for sometime heartwarming to happen you'll be waiting a long time.