Hvordan vi slipper af med de andre

I'm not familiar with Danish cinema, but after seeing Lars Von Trier's "Dogville" and now "How to Get Rid of the Others" I'm getting the impression that Danish intellectuals love to discuss morality and especially the question of how to deal with the stupidity and moral flaws of both yourself and others. Both films deal with this topic in an incredibly intelligent, multi-layered way.

Also like Lars Von Trier, Anders Ronnow-Klarlund seems to have been motivated by the concept of "less is more". Much of the film looks like fairly crude amateur footage, yet throughout the film I felt the touch of a genius. Almost every scene is literally filled with the sort of cynical misanthropy and arrogance many intellectuals have but rarely admit in public, yet in retrospect the film gave a somewhat comforting and powerful insight in the human psyche.

It is not a film for everyone, but you definitely don't have to be Danish to appreciate it. If you enjoyed "Dogville" and "Idiocracy", you're going to love this film !

We have a group of actors that know each other quite well, which means that they interact in an uncanny natural way. We also have a story that deals with a very real problem. Should the lowest and laziest be allowed to drag the rest down, or do we need to raise our expectations and demands? The satire is very much on point, and it works because it is far enough off that it works - it is still laughable. The humour is dark and as it should be, but probably not what non-Danish viewers will get right away. The production could have been better and less cluttered, and the audio is not done right. Obviously they wanted it gritty, but this just strikes me as if someone in audio production did not know what he/she was doing. The biggest let-down of this was not the film itself, it was its lack of promotion. It was non-existent at the time of the release.

Consider this movie a dark comedy with something to think about! When you expect to watch a movie that is realistic and probable, think twice. This movie is simply not like that. This movie is a satire, and it contains a lot of Danish humor, comparable with movies like Adam's Apples, The Green Butcher etc. You either like the dark absurdity that usually comes with Danish films, or you don't... It's definitely a matter of taste here! I for myself have enjoyed the movie as it was: with unexpected turns and characters that are very much overdone (but all this is clearly as it should be, it has a clear function in this movie). The underlying political ideas - as they could be when driven to extremes - give the audience something to think about! Just how far can a society go in getting rid of the others...?!

The premise of the movie is really great. It stars off great too. The pace is good, the story seems as dark as it's title, everything runs along smoothly ... well not for long though. Unfortunately very soon, the movie runs out of steam.

Yes there is the occasional flash of a funny idea and/or storyline, but given the premise and the opportunities that arise, this seems and is very shorthanded. A shame then, that it falls back into clichés and tries hard to be funny, even when the timing and everything else is off. And when I say off, I mean in it in a bad way. If you don't care about missed opportunities, than you will at least enjoy it's dark humour ...

"How We Get Rid Of The Others" is a confused movie, confused as in it does not really know what direction to take, never really sure whether to be deep and serious or flat and funny. This is a shame, because some of the elements work quite well. Søren Pilmark does a remarkable job playing the military commander and Søren Fauli plays the weak confused socialdemocratic politician perfectly, although it makes you wonder if it's really possible for such a spineless and retarded individual to be elected into parliament, but that isn't very important. What is however important is the character of Sidse/Belinda, who fails desperately. The idea of an academic person accidentally making up "The Copenhagen Criterias" which are the catalyst for the movie and then later on regretting it to start an underground organization to curb it's effects is neither realistic or funny and the double crossing girl comes off as an irrelevant, unbelievable and annoying character that shouldn't have made it to the storyline.

Folkes discovery of his biological parents is another side-story that just confuses and distracts from the main story.

So what works well? The relationship between Folke and Major Christian is brilliant, as is Christians numerous interviews with questionable citizens. I would have appreciated an interview scene with all of the citizens in the gym hall and perhaps a third character caught in the middle between Christian and Folke.

If you can forgive some crude acting and some lousy scenes, consider renting this title and appreciate the amusing and witty qualities that it does have.