Olsen-banden går i krig (1978)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Erik Balling

Writers:

Henning Bahs (writer)
Erik Balling (writer)

Release Date:

6 October 1978 (Denmark)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime

Plot:

Some criminal EU ministers plan to turn Denmark into a gigantic fair ground and holiday paradise. Egon...

Plot Keywords:

Olsenbanden | Sequel

Cast

Ove Sprogøe	...	Egon Olsen
Morten Grunwald	...	Benny Frandsen
Poul Bundgaard	...	Kjeld Jensen
Kirsten Walther	...	Yvonne Jensen
Axel Strøbye	...	Kriminalassistent Jensen
Ole Ernst	...	Politiassistent Holm
Bjørn Watt-Boolsen	...	Bang-Johansen
Ove Verner Hansen	...	Bøffen
Edward Fleming	...	Den sorte baron
Ejner Federspiel	...	Nattevagt
Karl Stegger	...	Køkkenchefen
Emil Hass Christensen	...	Fængselsinspektøren
Bjørn Puggaard-Müller	...	Departementchefen
Birger Jensen	...	Hoffman
Holger Perfort	...	Monberg

Also Known As:

The Olson Gang Goes to War (USA)

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

Denmark

Language:

Danish

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Copenhagen, Denmark

Company:

Nordisk Film

Trivia:

The clerks in the basement of 'rigsregistraturen' go by the names of Monberg, Thorsen and Hoffman. 'Monberg og Thorsen' and 'H. Hoffmann og sonner' were two of the largest civil engineering companies in Denmark at the time.

Quotes:

Egon: ...700-800 people work there.
Benny: 700-800! That's a lot!
Egon: Yes, that's because it's fully automated.

Movie Connections:

Remade as Jönssonligan får guldfeber (1984)

A few shortcomings don't manage to mar an overall excellent entry in the series

After the slightly disappointing "...Outta Sight", the series revolving around the Olsen Gang take a flying leap towards their peak yet again. In spite of a very silly sequence that wouldn't have looked quite so out of place in a show by Benny Hill or an old black and white silent film a la Charlie Chaplin, this is one of the best of the franchise. Dealing with the future of Denmark, the plot is exceptionally well-written. It evolves very nicely throughout the film, and the pacing is perfect. The acting is of the typical high level, with more or lesser known Danish actors of the time shining in the many smaller roles in the film. The humor(apart from in the scene mentioned above) is excellent. With the usual plays on words, sophisticated jokes and funny running gags, not to mention the masterful human touch that brings us so close to these characters(main as well as supporting), what grounds it all, what pulls us in. As Kjeld struggles mercilessly to access a meal that he's been anticipating for a long time, we can laugh at it, not because he's pitiful... but because he's real. We feel his pain. We can recognize it. Anyone who's seen the film knows exactly what I'm referring to, and I refuse to ruin it for anyone who hasn't. We are treated to some nice visuals in this one... the film takes us inside the Copenhagen City Hall(as far as me and my father could tell, shot on location), and even into the tower and to the City Hall Clock... and that's all I'm saying, as the scenes that take place there are too good to spoil. More fun is had with Germans, specifically through the character of The Black Baron. With an unusual opening, a completely different(though understandably so) Yvonne and a very funny variation on Egon being rescued and having the impassioned, sentimental speech after-wards, this certainly also manages to divert nicely from what has been established as normal for the films. Also, Bøffen is unusually witty, this time around, which works quite well. More machinery that would have made the (nationally)famous Dane Storm P. proud. This time around, Benny shows unexpected skills, and Kjeld is put on a diet. More pseudo-German, this time, spoken by Benny... in a hilarious and short scene. This is the tenth in the series, and it also came out exactly ten years after the first... something that the filmmakers made something of a bit of deal out of, in the film. I'll leave for the viewers to find out how. I recommend this to any fan of the series and/or of Danish comedy of this period. 8/10