DARK HORSE
"Dark Horse" is a light comedy about a Danish slacker who surprises himself by discovering responsibility. The second feature by French-born Icelandic director Dugar Kari doesn't follow a traditional plot, but rather proceeds in fits and starts through a series of comic vignettes that occasionally toy with flights of whimsy.
Kari shot his film in and around Copenhagen in a slightly hazy black-and-white, which he says is his homage to movies of the '60s. (There is one telling shot in color.) "Dark Horse" does remind one of '60s European films that played with romantic notions of anti-authoritarianism and youthful misfits. Kari shows little interest in looking deeper or letting the supporting roles do more than add to the jokiness. So other than in Scandinavia the film will have little impact outside of festivals.
Kari co-wrote the film with Danish screenwriter Rune Schjott and has cast several up-and-coming Danish actors including shovel-faced Jakob Cedergren as the lead. Daniel is a young fellow with little faith in the concepts of paying rent, maintaining a job or keeping a fixed abode. He makes under-the-table money as a graffiti artist when young men commission him to spray romantic tributes on walls to their girlfriends.
One day Daniel meets Franc (Tilly Scott Pedersen), a young woman with a shared sense of irresponsibility. The two fall in love, and when she becomes pregnant, decisions need to be made.
Meanwhile, the movie diverts its attention to focus somewhat fuzzily on a judge (Morten Suurballe), who appears to have something of a slacker streak within him, but this subplot never finds a comfortable home in the story.
Characters on the periphery -- a pal who dreams of becoming a soccer referee; Franc's libidinous mother; Daniel's enigmatic father -- are fleeting comic personalities without much substance.
Kari's own band, Slowblow, provides the whimsical music while Manuel Alberto Claro's black-and-white cinematography gives Copenhagen a wistful glow."
Kari shot his film in and around Copenhagen in a slightly hazy black-and-white, which he says is his homage to movies of the '60s. (There is one telling shot in color.) "Dark Horse" does remind one of '60s European films that played with romantic notions of anti-authoritarianism and youthful misfits. Kari shows little interest in looking deeper or letting the supporting roles do more than add to the jokiness. So other than in Scandinavia the film will have little impact outside of festivals.
Kari co-wrote the film with Danish screenwriter Rune Schjott and has cast several up-and-coming Danish actors including shovel-faced Jakob Cedergren as the lead. Daniel is a young fellow with little faith in the concepts of paying rent, maintaining a job or keeping a fixed abode. He makes under-the-table money as a graffiti artist when young men commission him to spray romantic tributes on walls to their girlfriends.
One day Daniel meets Franc (Tilly Scott Pedersen), a young woman with a shared sense of irresponsibility. The two fall in love, and when she becomes pregnant, decisions need to be made.
Meanwhile, the movie diverts its attention to focus somewhat fuzzily on a judge (Morten Suurballe), who appears to have something of a slacker streak within him, but this subplot never finds a comfortable home in the story.
Characters on the periphery -- a pal who dreams of becoming a soccer referee; Franc's libidinous mother; Daniel's enigmatic father -- are fleeting comic personalities without much substance.
Kari's own band, Slowblow, provides the whimsical music while Manuel Alberto Claro's black-and-white cinematography gives Copenhagen a wistful glow."
posted by manila at 10:31 PM
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