Flammen & Citronen (2008)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Ole Christian Madsen

Writers:

Lars Andersen (writer)
Ole Christian Madsen (writer)

Release Date:

28 March 2008 (Denmark)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | History | Thriller | War

Plot:

A drama centered on two fighters in the Holger Danske World War II resistance group. |

Plot Keywords:

Resistance | Double Agent | Father Son Relationship | Traitor | Last Stand

Awards:

9 wins & 15 nominations

Cast

Thure Lindhardt	...	Flammen
Mads Mikkelsen	...	Citronen
Stine Stengade	...	Ketty Selmer
Peter Mygind	...	Aksel Winther
Mille Lehfeldt	...	Bodil (as Mille Hoffmeyer Lehfeldt)
Christian Berkel	...	Hoffmann - Gestapo leader
Hanns Zischler	...	Gilbert - German colonel
Claus Riis Østergaard	...	Bananen
Flemming Enevold	...	Spex
Lars Mikkelsen	...	Frode Jacobsen aka Ravnen
Jesper Christensen	...	Flammens Far
Lærke Winther Andersen	...	Cap
Peter Plaugborg	...	Lillebjørn
Martin Hestbæk	...	Storebjørn
Thomas Voss	...	Teddy

Also Known As:

Flame and Citron (UK) (USA)
Flame & Citron (International: English title)
Flame + Citron (Australia)
Flammen og citronen (Denmark) (alternative spelling)
Plamen a Citron (Czech Republic)
Tage des Zorns (Germany)
The Flame and the Lemon (USA) (literal English title)

Runtime:

130 min

Country:

Denmark | Czech Republic | Germany

Language:

Danish | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-15 | Norway:15 | Ireland:15A | Portugal:M/16 (Qualidade) | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Canada:18A (Ontario) | Australia:MA

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany

Company:

Nimbus Film Productions

Trivia:

Almost every time we see a cigarette being lit on-screen, it is lit by The Flame.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Citron, his wife and daughter are in the car on the beach, there are no wheel trails in the sand.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Produktionsdagbog: Prag - Berlin - København (2008) (V)

Masterful

I am very impressed, and pleasantly surprised. I do not know any of the other work of the director, but I will have to consider anything else I see his name attached to. My opinion of what we Danes manage to put together in the medium of film is hardly a secret... I tend to find myself underwhelmed. Before tonight, I only really considered two such recent features truly great(the more notable of those, in my view, being Murk), and, well... as cliché as it is, that number is now three. The plot is magnificent, and the twists so marvelous and unexpected. There is maybe one thread that I found unsatisfying, perhaps especially because of how much attention was paid to it, but that's it. The acting is excellent... the one bad performance was had by a kid, and it didn't need to be better than it was. Lindhardt and Mikkelsen haven't a single weak moment between them, and Mygind... thumbs up. The cinematography is spectacular, though I did find the, all in all relatively few, zooms a bit distracting, save for one or two(these may be a Scandinavian thing, something similar appeared in Show Me Love). The editing is effective... the action(do note that this is not a straight-on piece within that genre) works, the drama likewise, and the only real criticism I can come with in this area is that there are a handful of places where things could be clearer. The writing there is infinitely little to complain about, and a long line of positives about, including the psychology, the complexity, the characters(the consistency of which is almost entirely flawless, and the only real problem within that is really how at least one major character disappears from the movie) and the incredibly accurate depiction of the time, the environment, the types of people. This is remarkably engaging. There is a little sexuality, and some language, as well as a measure of violence, but I wouldn't call any of it gratuitous. You do need a basic knowledge about the period, the place and the people, before watching this, but hey, nowhere near as much is required as for Der Untergang/Downfall. I don't know if this is entirely historically accurate, but little, heck, hardly any, is Hollywoodized, and it's undeniably entertaining and strong. I recommend this to any fan of drama, and anyone who wants a visual representation of the situation this revolves around. 8/10