Directed by:
Anders Thomas JensenScreenplay:
Anders Thomas JensenCinematography:
Kasper TuxenComposer:
Jeppe KaasCast:
Mads Mikkelsen, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Andrea Heick Gadeberg, Lars Brygmann, Nicolas Bro, Gustav Lindh, Roland Møller, Albert Rudbeck Lindhardt (more)Plots(1)
Anders Thomas Jensen, scriptwriter for filmmakers like Susanne Bier and Kristian Levring, feels at home in many genres, yet his own directorial style sticks out. Just like Adam’s Apples (2005) and Men & Chicken (IFFR 2016) his latest film is a black comedy with a plot only he could come up with. Riders of Justice starts with a series of sad events: a stolen bike, dismissal, a train accident. Coincidence or a causal link? Data analyst Otto (Nikolaj Lie Kaas) examines the matter aided by his eccentric colleague Lennart (Lars Brygmann) and their even stranger friend Emmenthaler (Nicolas Bro). Together with professional soldier Markus (Mads Mikkelsen), who lost his wife in the train wreck, the men develop into angels of wrath. The mission leads to results, though perhaps not the intended ones. Riders of Justice’s bone-dry humour and inimitable logic makes it another absurdist, yet educational and moving highlight in Jensen’s oeuvre. (International Film Festival Rotterdam)
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Reviews (12)
Danish filmmakers put me in a good mood yet again. Jensen's usual suspects showed me what it looks like when near-unquestionable facts triumph over lies and hatred, and I had a great time throughout. Since I watched very closely, it didn't escape me that Anders Thomas Jensen added a subtle human touch to the witty, action-packed, and extremely violent frenzy.
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A hybrid that has almost everything. That wouldn't be so unusual, but what is extremely extraordinary is how cleverly and sophisticatedly the filmmakers were able to combine the different aspects of the film together and what a whole they managed to make out of it. A bit of a guy drama full of weirdos, a bit of John Wick, occasionally a black comedy with typically Nordic, goofy humour and grunting actors.
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John Wick, a biker gang, a prostitute, causality, correlation, Christmas and IT dudes. It's equal parts psychological drama, Nordic noir with social overtones, proper black comedy, uncompromising action flick, intimate family drama about coping with unexpected loss, (not so) feel-good buddy movie, situation comedy, Christmas cheer movie and… and a few other genres and boxes too. What is admirable is that it is not for a moment a disparate mishmash and a tug-of-war over which genre will pull the strings. Despite the multi-genre disjointedness, it's integral, as it works on several levels and opposing genres simultaneously. So the scenes where you bust out laughing while nerve-wracking tension builds and we get to the heart of the characters, among other things, are not the exception that proves the rule.
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Actually a perfect return to the cinema. It's exactly the kind of film where a different row is laughing every moment, because the range of humor here is really wide. Occasionally there's a "yay!" from the left, a "dude!" from the back, and when someone sitting in front of you laments "Oh, shit" in one scene, you shake your head with a frown. Like the action scenes, which rival Gareth Edwards in brutality. Plus, it's a great grab bag of familiar faces (Mia Goth got fat? Dylan Moran can speak Danish? Is that the frog from Nachtmahr?) who are actually someone else. Plus, personally, I have a soft spot for movies whose cathartic punchline is how nothing actually matters. After all, how else to handle a story about how a crusade of male stereotypes (the most IT IT crowd, the most PTSD soldier, the most gay gay) avenge the death of a lady in a manner they're so forged into that they screw it up with grace from the ground up. The Egypt punchline is totally FTW, I'm still laughing at it as I type this. The first Jensen that sat well with me, though he's still clearly recognizable in this.
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Soldier Markus returns home from the war to take care of his daughter and cope with the tragic death of his wife, who was killed in a train accident. But when he discovers that a dangerous gang may have been involved, he decides to take revenge, even if it means working with a trio of antisocial geniuses. Riders of Justice is a clever multi-genre film that alternates funny moments with poignant ones, and bloody shootouts with intimate drama. But thanks to the great cast and the confident direction, it all fits together perfectly.
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