Something is rotten in the state of Denmark
In the early 1400’s, Queen Margrete (Trine Dyrholm) rules Denmark, Sweden and Norway with a clear voice, a steady hand and a clear head along with her adopted son Erik (Morten Hee Andersen). Erik is about to wed Queen Philippa of England and the potential for a new alliance will be formed. Things seem to be going great until a mysterious man from Graudenz, Poland (Jakob Oftebro) shows up, claiming to be King Oluf, the rightful heir to the thrown.
Naturally, this doesn’t go over well with the King and Queen. Erik tries to focus on his upcoming wedding and the Queen tries to figure out who this person is and why he would make such a claim. She employes two faithful subjects to go on a fact finding mission to get the answers that she needs answered. Hopefully, these men can get back in time before the mysterious man goes on trial for crimes against the crown and Her Majesty has to own up to her past mistakes.
Beautifully photographed in the Czech Republic in some fantastic castles, this dramatic history lesson comes to life with stellar performances from top notch actors who breath life into characters that could easily be written off as generic archetypes.
Loosely based on a story about a drifter who claimed to be the real king, director Charlotte Sieling along with writers Maya Ilsøe and Jesper Fink take us on a fascinating tale to the past with a story that will keep the audience guessing about who is telling the truth. With captivating performances from everyone on screen, what could easily have been a sappy storyline from a soap turned into a story about how a fierce mother will stick to her guns to protect everything that she’s created. In this case, she must choose to protect the son she raised to become the man he is today or the three nations that she unified in order protect her people from outside threats.
Samuel Goldwyn Films will release MARGRETE – QUEEN OF THE NORTH Friday, December 17 In Select Theaters and On Demand
Reviewed December 2, 2021 (screener provided by Samuel Goldwyn Films). Rating: TBC. Running time: 120 min.
PRODUCTION: A Samuel Goldwyn Films release of a SF Studios production, in co-production with Filmkameratene A/S, Truenorth Productions, Sirena Film & Film i Väst. Producers: Lars Bredo Rahbek & Brigitte Skov. Executive Producers: Lars Bjørn Hansen & Tim King.
CREW: Director: Charlotte Sieling. Writers: Jesper Fink, Maya Ilsøe & Charlotte Sieling (after an idea by Lars Bredo Rahbek). Editing: Sverrir Kristjánsson. Cinematography: Rasmus Videbæk. Music: Jon Ekstrand.
CAST: Tine Dyrholm, Søren Malling, Morten Hee Andersen, Jakob Oftebro, Bjørn Floberg, Magnus Krepper, Thomas W. Gabrielsson, Simon J. Berger, Linus James Nilsson & Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir.