The Keeper of Lost Causes

Based on the first of Jussi Adler-Olsen's Danish Noir crime novels this rogue cop adventure features hard-boiled detective Carl Mork and his Syrian assistant Assad.  Carl is being punished for his radical behavior and is relegated to a basement office as head of a new Department Q.  He is in charge of cold cases, an assignment the powers believe will keep him out of trouble.  The first case they choose sends off red flags in every direction and Carl finds himself in more trouble with the department.

Number 1 again

Today was my first marathon of 4 films in one day. This morning Diane, Gary and I saw Juan, a Danish production of Don Giovanni set in modern time with an updated libretto sung in English and peppered with contemporary foul language, tons of great sex, car chases e-mail and texting. Directed by the artistic director of the Danish Royal Opera, it was surprisingly entertaining and quite an accomplishment in casting. The stars were all young and beautiful with great bodies that they were not ashamed to show and they all sung “live” on location; it was not dubbed. My second film was the Belgian Madly in Love. It has been described as a foreign language version of It’s Complicated and it does have similarities but it is broader in its humor and much prettier to watch. The Miller girls are all beautiful, particularly Barbara. I could not take my eyes off of her. She also displays incredible comedic talent especially in a scene set at and art museum where she describes to the other 3 her first multiple orgasm. Think Sleeping in Seattle diner scene on steroids. I love this movie. Steam of Life is my first of the documentaries and portrays modern Finnish men pouring their guts out in saunas all over the country. The saunas are actually characters in their uniqueness and creativity. The men are all excruciatingly depressing each having either lost a child or wife. I found the dialogue a little contrived as if the director told each one to tell of their most painful experience. Surely all Finnish men aren’t this sad and dull; are they? With barely 15 minutes to spare I turned around and walked back into a theatre to see Carancho [Argentina] another gut wrenching examination of the underbelly of society. This time it’s ambulance chasers, petty thugs, evil hospital administrators, corrupt cops and junky doctors. It’s another tale of bad choices, compromised morals and failed redemption. It is not for the faint of heart and will probably be considered for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. The tow leads should also be considered for Oscars as well. I am going to try for 4 more tomorrow.