Dronningen

I will start by saying that I like the Danish title much better than the English one. "Dronningen" means simply "the queen", and that is precisely what Anne (Trine Dyrholm) is in her world. Both at home and at work, she is the solid, self-confident and straightforward monarch everybody knows and expects her to be. Everything threatens to break apart when Gustav (Gustav Lindh), her husband's son from a previous marriage, moves from Stockholm to go live with them in the Danish countryside. She will prove ready to everything in her power in order to salvage her marriage and her reputation from downfall, even if this means to turn her back on everything she stands for.

Although the way in which the moral issues are addressed tends sometimes to be a little bit too didactic (see the fact that Anne's job as a lawyer is to assist teenagers who have suffered from abuses), the plot is overall pretty convincing and I'd dare say even gripping at times, especially in the second part of the film. The acting's also not bad at all, with some moments of genuine intensity.

Heavy tension. Perfectly acted. It left me in a intense state of anguish. Watch it because it's a good movie, perhaps a bit too long.

You immediately get sucked into their world, and feel a part of the family and situation. It's truly an experience in its own right to watch this movie, because you feel the feelings of the characters and at times feel equally confused and frustrated. It's an emotional rollercoaster that you feel apart of.

Saw this at the Rotterdam film festival 2019, where it was part of the Big Screen Competition (another film got the price, alas). Despite that I usually do not like relational dramas, this one involved me due to a compelling plot, believable characters and unexpected developments. It is sad that it does not end well for everyone involved (no details, no spoilers), but I don't think that a different outcome would have been so much better. Main character Anne makes unwise choices, and has to live with the dire consequences, but it is easy for us to say from our comfy chairs.

All in all, unexpectedly for me with this kind of relational theme, I scored a maximum 5 for the audience award, for which it eventually received a very good 13th place (out of 162) with score 4.487 (out of 5).

Growing old or up is not something that will be the same for everyone. Also if you marry someone, you may find yourself realizing that you are not entirely fulfilled. Whatever you need to satisfy your need - the question is, how far can you go in making sure you get what you want? Or pursue happiness - it does not always include your partner.

There are quite a lot of questions this movie does raise (more for the viewer to find, but also some very obvious ones). Cheating can have many forms! But even in the most known one, you can cross a line that is ... well let's say hard to forgive if found out. The movie paints realistic relationships, has strong sex (as the censors would say I reckon) and very good performances by the actors. It doesn't even feel too long - everything makes sense and it has an ending that I feel most will understand and love (whatever that may mean for each individually)