Nordvest
Directed by:
Michael NoerCinematography:
Magnus Nordenhof JønckCast:
Gustav Dyekjær Giese, Oscar Dyekjær Giese, Lene Maria Christensen, Annemieke Bredahl Peppink, Nicholas Westwood Kidd, Roland Møller, Dulfi Al-Jabouri (more)Plots(1)
Eighteen-year-old Casper lives with his mother, younger brother Andy, and little sister in northwest Copenhagen. This is one of the poorest parts of the city, notorious for crime within the immigrant community. Casper and his friend Robin make money through petty theft and passing on the stolen goods to Jamal, one of the neighbourhood crooks. When the competent and ambitious young man gets an offer to work for a local mob, he can’t resist an opportunity which promises large amounts of regular cash. But then he finds himself caught between two rival gangs. Siblings Casper and Andy are played by real brothers Gustav and Oscar Dyekjær Giese. In Michael Noer’s bleak drama they give wholly convincing performances despite lacking previous acting experience. Bordering on social realism, Noer’s directorial style – in combination with documentary film approaches, a hand-held camera and dynamic editing work – guarantees this crime tale the necessary intensity, impact and credibility. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)
(more)Reviews (6)
A northern social gangster flick that’s minimalistic, realistic and brutal. The comparisons with Refn’s Pushers are warranted.
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A proper Danish torture by the human factor. Nordvest is, in my opinion, another of endless series of Scandinavian dramas, ruled by depression, sadness, the rise and the fall of two identical brothers who were born to a mother living in the lower Danish class. I really didn’t want to believe that anyone in Denmark could be doing so badly, but after finding out where Nordvest is and what makes it famous, I’m no longer surprised that the Scandinavian countries are gradually losing their status of safe countries. And as chance would have it, the ones responsible for this human sadness are a bunch of immigrants. A coincidence?
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Refn's Pusher on speed... Noer is not particularly original, but economical work with believable characters, a totally flowing script, meaningful use of colors / space and dynamic cuts / and the sharp jumps between environments are very cool. At this year's Karlovy Vary festival, I didn't see a more entertaining film with bigger drive, and it's also not a banal thriller, but rather a Refn-style empathetic view of the other side of the law. Noer can obviously make do without his colleague Lindholm - it is clear that these two are definitely moving to the forefront of Danish genre films.
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Michael Noer serves up typically stark, cold and unflinching filmmaking from the North, and the film is most reminiscent of Refn's Dealer. Copenhagen's underworld is close to London's, and the film's unpleasant atmosphere breathes from every corner. Roland Møller as the prototypical bastard is again excellent and Gustav Dyekjær Giese also gives a very decent performance. I love these films, so I'm very satisfied. 85%.
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An incredibly paced soc-thriller that other directors could learn from about how to make the most out of a little. Short scenes, their constant enrichment with sub-elements that set them apart, raw naturalism, and clever incorporation of formal shortcuts into otherwise almost dogmatic direction. Plus, I think a few more films and the term "Noer-esque ending" will make it to Wikipedia. Like his previous film R, this is bleak, gray, and yet it doesn't forget the viewer. I'm looking forward to seeing Noer tackle something bigger than "from zero to morgue-o" and give him the maximum credit.
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Michael Noer serves the audience another raw and extremely believable story from the Danish underworld. Like the drama R, Northwest also is imbued with an extremely disturbing atmosphere from which it is impossible to escape, just as the protagonist cannot escape from the entangled situation into which he has fallen thanks to his desire for money and the vision of a better life. I applaud the director for being able to make a gritty film even without streams of blood, which is still hard to watch. (75%)
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