This film by Søren Kragh-Jacobsen and Anders Thomas Jensen, is the third one being directed according to the, nowadays, worldwide known concept of "Dogme 95".
It also became an immensely popular film, not only in Denmark but in many countries all over the world.
It tells the story about Kresten (Anders W. Berthelsen), a man having left his rural roots and become a Young Urban Professional, getting married to his boss's daughter, Claire (Sofie Gråbøl) and looking forward to a prospering career within his father-in-law's company.
During their honeymoon, he receives a message that his father has died. He now has to visit the parental home in order to sort things out.
His wife wants to go with him but he doesn't want her to come, as he has'nt told her all about his family and their life, a life he is somewhat ashamed of displaying, as the spoiled brat he has become.
One of his family members is the mentally retarded brother Rud (Jesper Asholt), being one of the 'secrets' of his family, a secret kept away from his wife and her family.
When arriving at his parents home he finds his father's corpse on a table with a cloth over it and his brother under the very same table, afraid and in a shock.
From now on starts a hide-and-go-seek-play with not only his brother but also his wife and her family.
In order to get the house in a better state than when he came, he hires a woman - Liva (Iben Hjejle) - as a "housemaid". The woman in question is a prostitute who in turns tries to run away from someone who stalks her, calling her in the middle of the nights and threatening her.
When she arrives she takes on her job, although she finds the conditions rather horrendous.
On the same time she becomes somewhat fascinated by Kersten and his brother.
When her kid brother Bjarke (Emil Tarding) is being released from a reform school, she invites him to live with her and the others on the farm.
At first her kid brother makes fun of Kerstens brother Rud and finds them ridiculous but after a while, he changes his attitude.
All of a sudden Kerstens wife turns up and things becomes even more complicated, on the same time opening up for a revaluation of his life.
To complicate everything Liva's female friends, visit the farm, convinced that Kersten is a psychopath, trying to kill Liva!
And who is Mifune?
This is an interesting story about different characters, their interaction or lack of interaction, the danger in hiding your past and regarding the "upper class"-life being more valuable than the less economically abundant.
It's also a film, in a way, discussing the danger in regarding others in a condescending way, just because they don't "fit in" a socially regulated life style.
Good acting - as so often with Danish actors - with a somewhat to foreseeable story and not as dramatic as "Festen" ("The Celebration") or "Idioterne" ("The Idiots").
It's a tragicomic story, about - among other things - friendship and love where there seem to be none of these and the importance of looking at your life from different angles.
It also became an immensely popular film, not only in Denmark but in many countries all over the world.
It tells the story about Kresten (Anders W. Berthelsen), a man having left his rural roots and become a Young Urban Professional, getting married to his boss's daughter, Claire (Sofie Gråbøl) and looking forward to a prospering career within his father-in-law's company.
During their honeymoon, he receives a message that his father has died. He now has to visit the parental home in order to sort things out.
His wife wants to go with him but he doesn't want her to come, as he has'nt told her all about his family and their life, a life he is somewhat ashamed of displaying, as the spoiled brat he has become.
One of his family members is the mentally retarded brother Rud (Jesper Asholt), being one of the 'secrets' of his family, a secret kept away from his wife and her family.
When arriving at his parents home he finds his father's corpse on a table with a cloth over it and his brother under the very same table, afraid and in a shock.
From now on starts a hide-and-go-seek-play with not only his brother but also his wife and her family.
In order to get the house in a better state than when he came, he hires a woman - Liva (Iben Hjejle) - as a "housemaid". The woman in question is a prostitute who in turns tries to run away from someone who stalks her, calling her in the middle of the nights and threatening her.
When she arrives she takes on her job, although she finds the conditions rather horrendous.
On the same time she becomes somewhat fascinated by Kersten and his brother.
When her kid brother Bjarke (Emil Tarding) is being released from a reform school, she invites him to live with her and the others on the farm.
At first her kid brother makes fun of Kerstens brother Rud and finds them ridiculous but after a while, he changes his attitude.
All of a sudden Kerstens wife turns up and things becomes even more complicated, on the same time opening up for a revaluation of his life.
To complicate everything Liva's female friends, visit the farm, convinced that Kersten is a psychopath, trying to kill Liva!
And who is Mifune?
This is an interesting story about different characters, their interaction or lack of interaction, the danger in hiding your past and regarding the "upper class"-life being more valuable than the less economically abundant.
It's also a film, in a way, discussing the danger in regarding others in a condescending way, just because they don't "fit in" a socially regulated life style.
Good acting - as so often with Danish actors - with a somewhat to foreseeable story and not as dramatic as "Festen" ("The Celebration") or "Idioterne" ("The Idiots").
It's a tragicomic story, about - among other things - friendship and love where there seem to be none of these and the importance of looking at your life from different angles.
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