Erlösung

As I had seen Kvinden i buret and Fasandræberne and liked them both, it is logical that I set to Flaskepost fra P as well. And I am contented again, even a bit more than with the other two. Following the main leitmotif, there are witty dialogues between the two policemen about faith and religion, and more suspense scenes where the outcome is unpredictable. Perhaps the wrongdoer's identity was revealed too soon, but his motives not revealed until the end and great performances of all stars of the film generated yet a pleasant and intense film experience, based on a renown book by Jussi Adler-Olsen (well, I have not read them, but I am not a person vigorously comparing related books and films, with a trivial conclusion that "the book was much better" :))

So, another good creation within Scandinavian Noir, and another reason and opportunity to acquaint yourself with Nikolaj Lie Kaas' talent.

This is the third installment in the Department Q series. Saw this few days back on a DVD. It begins with a message in a bottle from disappeared children. The movie starts as a kidnapping drama n then turns into a serial killer thriller n later explores the importance of faith. Some may compare this to Prisoners, True Detectives S1 n Marshland. Nonetheless it is a very solid crime thriller. There is sufficient tension n good amount of atmosphere. The cinematography was gorgeous. This time the movie has some decent action sequences too. Trains, helicopters, car chase. Our two leading detectives, Nikolaj Lie Kaas n Fares Fares acted good. The guy who played the serial killer acted well. He is the creepiest and most effective villain of the Department Q films.

It might seem that there is a decline in the movies, but this is still rock solid. I can only imagine that the book is even more than that. It has characters from the previous movies (and books of course) and has a case that is pretty strong. You don't have the urgent feeling and the playfulness it had in the previous movies. As dark as they got, you always had something light in them.

That's almost missing entirely here. There's still character moments, but strings and things are being said and left on the sideline without giving them a resolution. It's a shame, but the movie is packed so much, that some things have not the punch they deserved to have and should have had. Still the movie and especially the villain are great. And it's not so much about who it is, but why he is and where and how to find him ...

This is the best of the three films in my opinion, it is not darker as such, off course the fact that its about kids getting taken is just not very nice to think about, but the cases they are working on are dark and we are beginning to know the characters and their different persona's and they really capture many great aspects of the characters and their interaction with other people.

I haven't read any of the books, but based on my wife's explanation, this is also the best adaption of the books, they are still changing things and making it more viewer friendly, but that's how it is.

Serial killers are always strange and dark, but this one is very well portrayed by Pål Sverre Hagen, he really seems like this nice guy, good looking (a Norwegian Ryan Gosling), well spoken, calm and trustworthy. But deep down he is just a bad bad man, with a terrible past and a twisted mind.

Location, seating & time: Dagmar, Nordisk Film, Vesterbro, Denmark - Bio 2, row 6 seat 1 & 3 - 22.03.2016 at 16.30

I saw Norwegian director Hans Petter Moland's recent film In Order of Disappearance (2014) a couple of years ago. I was very impressed with that Nordic noir which was both very humorous and inventive. A Conspiracy of Faith is another thriller but one with quite a differing approach. It dispenses with the comedy of the earlier film and instead goes for a pretty downbeat approach. Hardly surprising really when you consider that the story is about two cops investigating the case of two abducted children. This kind of material is always one that is going to be somewhat dark, another recent north European film The Treatment (2014) dealt with this subject in a very head on manner and consequently was very disturbing indeed in places. A Conspiracy of Faith only goes so far with its dark material and by the end of the film slightly dissipates its impact further by having its narrative go into more standard thriller territory. But despite that, this is still another compelling bit of Nordic noir.

There are strong acting performances throughout, with a return performance from Pål Sverre Hagen - so memorable as the hilarious vegan crime boss from In Order of Disappearance - as the cold hearted psychopath. The story has added interest in that it mixes in themes of religion, with the killer himself solely targeting children from deeply religious families, exploiting the fact that these people have more faith in God than in the police. So there are a few distinctive elements interwoven into what otherwise may have been a standard serial killer thriller. I would probably rate this as less interesting as the more ambitious In Order of Disappearance but it still remains yet another pretty impressive Scandinavian noir.