Gift

Were it not for U.S. Customs taking action against key scenes in this import from Denmark, "Venom" (U.S. title) wouldn't be remembered. In fact, it isn't much detailed or voted on in the Database.

Yet, during its American run, this picture made quite a stir in national magazines, like Time, with pictures of the censored shots featured. It was one of the few films in which moviegoers in theaters were forced to endure large white "blots" on the screen, completely covering key scenes.

The story concerns a hedonistic young chap who delights in stirring up trouble with his video camera, screening filmed private intimate moments to parents of their children who are prominently featured on the video.

Apparently the explicit nature of said scenes were too much for Customs, who blatantly "barred" viewers from seeing the original film - yet still released it in an incredibly "blocked out" version.

A look at the low response on the Database indicates that the movie's quite forgotten, and another chapter of the past is past.

This film offers one of the most truthful portrayals of the mixed-up Danish attitude to sex and pornography. It was made in the sixties, which was the last gasp of Denmark as a nation of open-minded people. Hence, the film refuses to judge, and instead throws a shower of thought-provoking questions at the viewer, with young people voicing open-minded and progressive ideas while the parents react with shock and violence. Back then it looked as if the new generation would change the world for the better, and certainly it managed to overthrow some oppressive censorship laws, but alas, anyone living in Denmark today is well familiar with this country's present puritanical right-wing politics. The generation conflict in "Gift" parallels the conflict between how Danes are still perceived and how they really are. No wonder if Danes don't like watching this film. It's way too close to home.