Dansen med Regitze

This film tells a really sad story. I don't know whether it's based on real characters but I hope it's not. It's not the story of Regitze, as the title suggests, but the one of her husband. Director Kaspar Rostrup evokes a depressing feeling in the viewer by showing the couple's present situation, having a garden party with their old friends, alternating with important episodes of their marriage, where Regitze turns out to be a dominant, egoistic wife. The comparison between now and then makes the movie very shocking and sad and I really recommend it to every one, especially to men who are about to marry.

Honestly not great, it was a little too old-fashioned for me and pretty unlikable characters. Regitze is a lot to handle and honestly I wouldn't if I were Karl Aage, but then again I'm not and this could only work because he is a pushover and she is domineering and that's how she likes it. It's her way or the highway and he senses that. Only I dislike women like that and have no respect for men like that who like women like that.

The movie is in the flashbacks mostly, with some drama in the current timeline as well. We jump back and forth in various timelines that show us things in the past. I was engaged in the beginning but not so much as time went on. I guess the deal breaker was when she did a 180 and decided to baptize her son. That was grating. The whole thing was kind of comedic till then but I was no longer amused by that. I guess forced religion is my breaking point.

I have not read the novel... though I wouldn't rule out that I will, now... and thus I cannot make any comparisons, or rate the quality of this as an adaptation. It is not often that I watch Danish films, but I am glad I made this one of those occasions. This is well-directed, and genuinely emotionally affecting. It does not contain an ounce of sap. Instead, you get to care about the people, and you find yourself drawn in. This stars two of our greatest actors, and the rest of the cast are excellent, as well. Almost every single performance is spot-on, and the children are fine. Nørby and Helmuth are flawless. Having someone's son(or daughter) play them at a younger age is an obvious choice, and it works. Told largely in flashbacks and with a chronology that goes back and forth a lot, this is about a married couple's life together, right from when they first met. Character development is plentiful and well-done, and they are all credible, consistent and convincing. The music is fitting. This is well-paced, and nothing seems excessive or extraneous. There is not a lot of offensive material in this... some content is disturbing and unsettling. Kids aren't really the target audience here, however. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys the genre of drama. 8/10

I was not as overwhelmed with sadness as some of the other IMDb posts indicate they were. Yes, there are some sad elements to it, but all in all, there's much more to the movie than sadness. It's the story of a couple from the time they met until the present as shown through flashbacks the husband sees as he thinks about the many years they've had together. It is interesting to watch and seemed so very real--like this is a couple we all might know. What I also liked was how the mother-in-law was portrayed--and ultimately how her daughter, despite her protests, became just like her over time! While not the very best Danish film I have seen (that honor goes to "Festen"; also known as "The Celebration"), it is excellent in all facets.

This film is one of those you will always keep in the back of your mind. Ghita Nørby and Frits Helmuth have indeed played together many times but this is one of the best.

It's dealing with mourning and death, being together and in love for a whole lifetime and with a tremendously sad ending. In this film we're faced with lives catastrophies at the same time as we see a true and lifelong love.

A marriage with its ups and downs but a couple who are always together in safety.

As a film it is really sad mainly because it seems so real; that it could happpen to anyone. Another thing which makes this film great is that it portraits totally normal danish life; nothing fancy or spectacular, we're just shown a couple who've been together for everso many years and at the end of it all we see how utterly difficult it is to part.

A film that definately is worthwhile watching since it gives one something to think about. As we know Martha Christensen really can make tragedies but never over the line. She indeed touches peoples souls and I wonder if that isn't also the meaning.