Denmark’s “Royal Affair” Amps Up Foreign Film Category
Review by LEAH SYDNEY:
“A Royal Affair” — Denmark’s period drama for the upcoming foreign film category– won the AFI Audience Award last night in L.A. This grand epic is romantic, heartbreaking and beyond absorbing. Suffice to say it’s catching Hollywood by powerful surprise. This gripping film, expertly directed by Nikolaj Arcel, adroitly blends actual historical events in 18th century Denmark, which include the real life affair between Princess Caroline Matilda who was married off at age 15 to eccentric King Christian VII of Denmark.
Caroline–the sister of mad King George lll of Great Britain–played with heartfelt yearning by Alicia Vikander. King Christian is portrayed with maddening madness by Mikkel Folsgaard).
In history, Caroline began an affair with her husband’s full time physician turned chief minister, the stoic at first then love-struck Johann Struensee (Mads Mikkelson.) Caroline and Struensee share an overwhelming passion for each other. She is also captivated by his forward thinking, and intellectual investment in the Enlightment. Struensee’s rise to power and the implementation of these very ideas ultimately sealed their sad fate.
Superb acting, smart directing, perfectly polished dialogue, combined with luscious sets and lavish photography, this film is truly sublime, intoxicating and fascinating on every level. Add this to a group of foreign films including “The Intouchables,” “Amour,” and “Kon Tiki” that will make this category hotter than it’s been in years this Oscar season.
A Royal Affair opens today in New York and Los Angeles, and rolls out to the art theater market shortly.
Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News. Friedman previously wrote the Intelligencer column at New York Magazine, He writes for Parade magazine and has written for Details, Vogue, the New York Times, Post, and Daily News and many other publications. He is the writer and co-producer of a film about R&B Music called “Only the Strong Survive,” which was released by Miramax in 2003 and was a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals.
Phil Anderer
Proof that adultery as existed for as long as the institution of marriage and long before affairs dating sites like Undercover Lovers and Victoria Milan!
saon
Excuse me, but the name is Mads (Dittman) Mikkelsen, with “sen” at the end. He is Danish. If it’s “son” at the end, the name is Swedish, like in Johansson.
Alicia Vikander is of course Swedish. Note the resemblance to Stieg Larsson’s made up name for his heroine, Lisbet Salander.
When a name ends with -dal, -skog, -lund, -vik, (they all mean formations of nature) they are usually Swedish, or at least Scandinavian.