Skyggen af Emma

There was a lot I wanted to like about this movie. The acting was good and the story very interesting. The problem was, despite all this, there were some HUGE holes in the plot that just made the movie look contrived.

The story begins with a bratty 11 year-old (Emma) being ignored by her self-involved mother. As her family is rich, Emma decides to fake her own kidnapping. And I liked it when it becomes apparent just how indifferent Mom is and how apparently decent Dad is--though because he works so hard he finally realizes he's taken his little girl for granted. I liked the basic plot so far.

However, what do you do with a little girl? Any place she hides in the city, people are bound to recognize her or at least ask her where she lives. After all, an 11 year-old can't just wander the streets indefinitely. This is where the plot all falls apart for me. A lonely sewer worker takes her in and believes, at least at first, her ridiculous story. He never checks this out for himself but allows her to stay there for several days!! Huh?! Then, she collects the ransom money (with the assistance of some neighbor boys) and takes them all to stay at the fanciest hotel in town and live like royalty?! And STILL no questions? Ultimately, the man is arrested because they think HE kidnapped Emma. But, in the end she tells the truth and everyone is apparently satisfied!! Talk about contrived! This could never happen on any planet I have ever visited!!

This is one of the best films I have ever seen in my life. My mother tongue is Chinese and I did not understand the language in the film. I had to watch the English subtitles. All these did not reduce the attraction of the film. I could easily feel the love in the film.

I always hope that there will be a dvd version so that I can keep it for ever. Surely I will pass it to my children and hopefully grandchildren.

Don't miss it if you come across it.

God bless.

This film truly deserves 5 stars plus. It is beautiful, thought provoking and poignant. The acting is superb, especially on the part of the obviously talented Danish actress Line Kruse, who plays the role of a willful, spoiled and materially indulged child. She is also spiritually and emotionally starved by her distant and self absorbed parents. After staging her own kidnapping, she stumbles upon a simple Swedish ex-con and sewer worker (acted wonderfully by Borje Ahlstedt)who is basically viewed as a social outcast amongst his fellow workers and neighbors. The tender friendship that ensues between the two social opposites is extremely touching. The setting for this Danish film is during the 1930's and it captures the period in beautiful style. I own this movie on VHS and am hoping that it will be released on DVD sometime soon. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who loves meaningful and beautiful movies.

I was surprised to find that this precious gem of a movie was sitting here in a dark corner of the IMDb without even one comment. Perhaps it's the Danish title, "Skyggen af Emma"; I guess it doesn't particularly lend itself to casual surfing. The English translation, "Emma's Shadow", will get you there if you know what you're looking for. And the movie truly is a precious gem. Sure, you have to put up with subtitles, but they don't really get in the way of understanding what the movie is all about. The essence of the movie is to be found in the evolving loving relationship between eleven year old Emma, a bright, complex, but neglected child of affluent self-absorbed parents, and the simple Malthe, an ex-convict who works in the city sewers. The profound feelings that develop in each for the other doesn't require dialog. Their faces and eyes and body language speak those feelings far better than any author's words could. In fact, the final scene is carried through without one word spoken - and becomes as deeply moving a scene as you're ever see in any motion picture. Actually, there are several scenes of powerful emotional impact along the way as true love sets in solidly between the two. I don't think I'm giving away anything when I say that the capstone of their relationship is in the beautifully understated hotel room sequence near the end of the picture. That and the final scene I already mentioned will bring a tear to any but the coldest of hearts. It must be noted that Line Kruse, as Emma, and the veteran actor Borje Ahstedt, as Malthe, put in masterful performances. It appears that the picture is out of print at the present time. That's a shame. The world needs more such movies. Real beauty is becoming harder to find in present day literature. However, it should still be available in some rental stores. It's worth going out of your way to see before it sadly disappears entirely.