Men & Chicken

Gabriel and Elias are brothers, but they look nothing like each other save for a hair lip. Gabriel is a down at heart professor and Elias is a man who has a way with the ladies – the wrong one that is and a need for a lot of 'tension relief'. They are both a bit odd – to say the least.

Then their father 'pops his clogs' (well the film is Danish) and leaves the 'boys' a VHS message. In it they discover that he is not their biological father and that their real daddy lives on some remote island and is a bit of a scientist or something. Anyway with no time left to lose the lads decide they have to trace their real family – and so the fun begins.

Now this has some belly laugh moments and Mads Mikkelsen seems to relish the role. Then so does everyone else too and it must have been great fun to make. It is a pretty dark comedy in places but it also has a fair smattering of slapstick too. There is also a great story with lots of fun, truisms and heart. Written by Anders Thomas Jensen who brought us 'Green Butchers' and many more – this is one of those films that you will tell your friends is a must see.

Anders Thomas Jensen has been known for spawning very creative stories, ones that are arguably designed for the absurd. Even if this is the case, there's an underlying genius to what he has created with 'Men and Chicken' (Mænd & høns). Whatever the idea might have been, it came together in the end perfectly.

The story revolves around two brothers from Denmark who suffer from grotesque appearances and other mental issues that hinder them on a daily basis. While one brother, Gabriel, is a University professor who can't maintain a relationship, the other is the loose-cannon, Elias (phenomenally played by Mads Mikkelsen), who also has relationship issues and can't seem to go more than an hour without having to gratify himself.

The brothers learn from their now deceased father that he was not their biological father, that the real one is a Geneticist who specializes in Stem Cell Research, fathered both men with different women, and that he resides on a remote island. While this excites Gabriel at first due to his assumptions that him and Elias could not be related, they embark on a journey that reveals their true family history. They find out that they have three other half-brothers who live on the remote island, and surprise surprise, they have similar features. While Elias is able to, say, communicate with the loners of the island in far less civilized methods, Gabriel attempts to help improve their ways of problem solving by talking and not by hilarious slapstick comedy beatings.

It seems as if the story gets its inspiration from Kafka's 'The Metamorphisis'. So very "Kafka-esque" ('Mission Hill' reference). I'll let that idea sit with you.

The film breaks the barriers of creativity in storytelling from both a comedic and dramatic perspective. It opens and closes as if reading a kids storybook, the musical score has a certain creepy feel to it, and the makeup and design all around was made to give the characters a worn down and dirty look that couldn't have possibly been any better.

What was really fantastic about the film was despite the absurdity, the story really gelled into something of substance and quality. It told us that aren't able to choose our family, and that being different is the best thing in the world.

The film ends on the note that every life -- be it creature or human, ugly or pretty, fat or skinny — is truly a small miracle. Things happen that are out of your control, and when you learn about what who you really are, it is possible to find comfort and acceptance.

"For the very simple reason that life is life, and that the alternative is not preferable."

In recent decades, in the West, it has been difficult to create a production where "variously challenged" persons are subject to irony, mockery, with characteristic violence and non-piety. The US is probably out of the question already, only Brits and Scandinavians have still dared to create something different within the subject mentioned. Mænd & høns is another fine example of them, with excellent script and direction (Anders Thomas Jensen) and strong ensemble cast (virtually all performers belong to the finest contemporary Danish film actors) have provided a meaty and distinct result.

True, not all characters are at the same level, e.g. Søren Malling and Nicolas Bro could not reveal their talent in full, but David Dencik, Mads Mikkelsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas were brilliant again - and in such different roles! No villains, no clerks, no policemen... Those not acquainted with those names should definitely see other films with their presence - to realise how versatile actors they are.

It is evident that some social strata may feel themselves affected and somewhat resentful, but the film should not be taken too seriously. However, it contains multiple warnings and attitudes that can/should be avoided.

All in all, another good Danish film, recommended to them fond of twisted humour connected with society-related stuff to be pondered on and over.

A film appears from time to time, defying any attempt at categorization, a film so strange, absurd, disturbing but also comic and human, that a special genre must be created for it and the film declared as the head of the series. This is the case with 'Men & Chicken', a movie released on screens in 2015, written and directed by Anders Thomas Jensen. It's a film that doesn't belong in my comfort zone, and the viewing experience was mixed for me, alternating moments when I wondered 'what is this nonsense about?' with moments of real cinematic fascination. This is the second film by the Danish director that I have seen in the last ten days and the fact that Jensen is one of the most original and interesting screenwriters and directors not only in Denmark but also in the whole world seems undeniable to me.

Elias (Mads Mikkelsen) and Gabriel (David Dencik) are brothers. On his deathbed, their father confesses to them that they are in fact adopted. Their biological father lives somewhere, on an isolated island with a population of 42 inhabitants. While searching for hime, they will discover a landscape worthy of horror movies, a farm full of animals and the fact that they have three more brothers. The two are already pretty weird characters, but that's nothing compared to how their brothers look and behave. From here the film slips into an intrigue and an atmosphere that combines the absurd with the grotesque, the rude with the bizarre. Almost anything I can write here would be a spoiler, so I'll just say that the five brothers will discover the hidden secrets of their own origins and natures together.

Anders Thomas Jensen practices a kind of humor in this film that is far from my personal taste. The film is full of extremes that can only be taken as a joke. Even if I am resistant to many of the types of effects that are current in modern horror movies, I dislike some of the stuff exposed in this film. Mads Mikkelsen is formidable and the whole team of actors is able to build a world of strange characters whose behaviors, if they follow any rules, these are totally different from the usual. The scenario holds surprises at every turn, it is impossible to predict what will happen in the next minute, especially since what is happening does not always make sense. There is a message in this film, and it is an important one, but before I got to it I had to make the effort to endure many scenes and situations that were hard to digest for me. 'Men & Chicken' belongs to the category of films that I can appreciate in terms of cinematography and originality, but whose viewing require an effort for me.

I don't even know where to begin with this. It's so far out, that if you're not expecting what is going to happen (as in not having seen the trailer or read the synopsis), you'll be blown away. Though even with some knowledge this should work wonders on ones brain. Just the fact that Mads Mikkelsen is in it, should be enough for anyone who's not familiar with the other cast members or the director to give it a go.

Having said that, the humor won't be everyones taste. Actually some might not even consider many things happening as funny. They might label them with other things and words. But if you like humor that is quite quirky and weird, you will relish and cherish this. Although I wouldn't say the movie can be viewed as big twist movie, I didn't see things coming ... even the ones that were right there to put together!