SORG OG GLÆDE

What do you do when your wife kills your 9-month old daughter with a kitchen knife in a fit of depression? That's the theme of Sorg og Glæde ("Grief and Happiness"), the new film by the well-known Danish director Nils Malmros. It's particularly relevant for Malmros, since that is exactly what his own wife did in 1984 to their baby. They are still together, though they have never had any other children.

Such a personal tragedy could have made the film sentimental, mawkish even. Reviews were mixed, the one in my paper rather damning. I saw it this evening and thought it was rather good. If you know the story and how it pans out, then the whole thing hangs on the quality of the acting, the cutting, the cinematography. And they were all excellent.

It also seems to appeal to the locals in my home town. A full house last night, around 50 tonight, a wet Wednesday at the end of November. Gravity from tomorrow, the Counselor next week, Hunger Games 2 before Christmas. They will all be rather different.

Walter Blotscher