Jesper Christensen Movies

This Danish-Swedish-Norwegian film takes place off the coast of Denmark in the mid-18th Century. In 1760, timid 25-year-old pastor Poul (Lars Simonsen) arrives to serve at the rainswept Faroe Islands community of Torshavn where parishioners tell him about the scandalous behavior of young Barbara Christina Sallin (Anneke von der Lippe). Eventually, despite warnings, Poul marries her. When Barbara enters into an affair with a student from Copenhagen, Poul is pressured to prosecute his own wife for the crime of fornication. Shown at the 1998 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Donna (Birgitte Simonsen) has boyfriends, but she loves Britt (Hanne Windfeld Lund). Britt loves Donna back, but she's going to get married to a man who's probably not good husband material (Ole Lemmkeke). The two of them try to make sense of their lives and loves, but ultimately they are only sure that they care about each other. It turns out that some of their men care about each other, too. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

In a series of remarkable events inspired by a true story, Maria Heiskanen stars as Maria Larsson, a Finnish mother and housewife who devotes all of her attention, care, and consideration to the well-being of her family -- but, like many homemakers, does so at the expense of her own identity and self-awareness. Not that her dockworker husband, Sigge (Mikael Persbrandt), particularly deserves such consideration; a brutish, alcoholic lout, his evenings consist of making life hell for Maria and their daughter with tyrannical, abusive behavior. Then, as the dockworkers go on strike and the family's economic situation plummets, a ray of hope appears, in the form of a Contessa camera won in a local lottery. Unsurprisingly, Maria at first attempts to pawn it to reel in extra monies, but store owner Sebastian Pedersen convinces her otherwise; he teaches her how to use it, and she begins taking gorgeous, haunting photographs with the unaffected, instinctive perceptions of a young child. As the woman's self-discovery builds and her identity takes on form and definition, Sebastian unofficially takes her on as a protégée and quietly witnesses romantic feelings for her building inside of him. Meanwhile, Sigge's life falls to pieces when the authorities connect him with the catastrophic explosion of a British vessel. Maria's daughter, Maja (Callin Öhrvall), narrates. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

This historical drama chronicles the struggle of Swedish businessman Raoul Wallenberg (Stella Skarsgard), as he fought valiantly to save the lives of the Jewish residents of Nazi-occupied Budapest. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

This powerful Scandinavian biopic chronicles the fall of one of Norway's most respected authors, Knut Hamsun (played by Max von Sydow in one of his most acclaimed performances) who up until WW II was considered one of the greatest Norwegians of the 20th century. At the dawn of the war, the Nobel Prize winning author shocked his countrymen by publicly siding with the Nazis. His wife Marie took it a step further and went to Germany to give lectures. Following the war, both were convicted and branded as traitors. Hamsun attempts to answer the questions surrounding the author and his wife's treachery. By the time the war erupted, Hamsun was an elderly curmudgeon who could barely hear. A profoundly lonely man with hatred of British Imperialism, he was an easy target for Nazi propaganda. His wife Marie, who in Norway is still more vilified than her husband, also had her reasons to support the German party, but while though-provoking, they don't invite much sympathy. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Told from the point of view of a young man who is so naive as to appear simple-minded, the movie follows a few days in the lives of the unemployed living on the dole in 1930s Copenhagen. It is based on the 1940 autobiographical novel by Eigil Jensen. The main character (Jesper Christensen) hopes for snow, so that he can earn some coins to pay for his sparse, tiny room by shoveling the streets. One of his acquaintances is a man, known as "The Weightlifter," who steals books and passes them on to the poor young man. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The Dogma 95 movement has seen some searing looks into the human condition but rarely a romantic comedy -- until now. Veteran Danish filmmaker Lone Scherfig spins this deadpan look at a group of lovelorn outsiders living in a grey corner of Copenhagen. After the perennially foul-tempered minister of a local church is fired after doing great injury to the organist, Andreas moves to the area to take over the parish. Staying in a hotel until his predecessor can be wrested from the rectory, Andreas befriends the establishment's scatter-brained manager, Jørgen, who is utterly in love with a beautiful Italian barmaid working at a nearby pub run by Hal-Finn. When the irascible Hal-Finn is chastised by the bar's owner for his unkempt appearance, he goes to a local salon where he meets Karen, a comely hairdresser harried by her grasping mom. Meanwhile, Andreas falls for a lethally klutzy pastry shop assistant named Olympia. This film was screened at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

A mother and daughter clash over their conflicting views on intimacy and communication in this unusual independent drama from filmmaker Linda Wendel. Sally (Mille Hoffmeyer Lehfeldt) is a young woman who earns her living by appearing on an adult webcam service, where she performs sexual acts while an audience watches on the internet. Sally's career as a cyberspace sex worker stems from her negative feelings towards her mother Janne (Karen-Lise Mynster), a free spirited woman whose embrace of free love alienated Sally as a child. Looking for revenge against her mom, Sally returns home for a visit and meets Janne's latest lover, Lennart (Jesper Christensen). Sally hopes to hurt her mother by luring Lennart into bed, leading to an ugly confrontation. As its title suggests, One Shot was filmed in one continuous, unedited 78-minute take; it was one of two films shot in this manner that was screened at the 2008 Mannheim-Heidelberg International Film Festival, along with Josh Melin's Preludium. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A devastating betrayal sends James Bond from Australia to Italy and South America on a mission of vengeance that pits the suave super-spy against a powerful businessman with diabolical intentions. Betrayed by Vesper, 007 (Daniel Craig) suppresses the urge to make his latest mission personal as he teams with M (Judi Dench) to interrogate Mr. White (Jesper Christensen). It soon becomes apparent that the organization behind the blackmailing of Vesper is more powerful than Bond and M had previously anticipated, and after discovering forensic evidence that links an MI6 traitor to a bank in Haiti, Bond immediately sets out to gather more intelligence.

Once in Haiti, a case of mistaken identity leads Bond into the company of the ravishing Camille (Olga Kurylenko), a dangerous beauty with her own vendetta. It's Camille who leads Bond to a ruthless businessman named Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), who is soon revealed to be the mastermind of a powerful but clandestine organization. Greene is conspiring to corner the market on one of the world's most precious natural resources, and in order to make that happen he has forged a deal with an exiled general named Medrano (Joaquin Cosio). By enlisting the aid of his many associates and using his vast resources to force contacts within the CIA and the British government into bending to his will, Greene plans to overthrow the current regime of a Latin American country and hand control over to General Medrano in exchange for a parcel of land that appears barren on the surface, but actually houses a natural resource that will make Greene the most powerful man on the planet. But Bond's mission to uncover the culprit who blackmailed Vesper and prevent Dominic Greene from exerting his will on the entire world won't be easy, because now everyone from the CIA to the terrorists and even M are out to get him. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The psychological thriller Shaking Dream Land stars Philip Winchester as Robert, a husband and soon-to-be-father who becomes haunted by memories of his past as the day of the baby's birth grows closer. Soon he must confront his past in order to have any kind of future. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

A Danish family attempts to cope with the death of their mother in director Annette K. Olesen's bittersweet family drama Sma Ulykker (Minor Mishaps). When Ulla (Vigga Bro) dies in a sudden, tragic mishap, husband John (Jorgen Kill) attempt to balance his loss by forming a closer relationship with daughter Marianne (Maria Wurgler Rich. Suspecting that the realtionship may be taking on unhealthy undertones, Marianne's sister Eva (Jannie Faurschou) voices her concern to self-absorbed businessman brother Tom (Henrik Pip), who eschews concerns for his family in favor of more pressing personal issues. As the immidiate family continues to deal with the loss and the resulting effects it has on thie interaction, uncle Soren (Jesper Christensen)'s marriage seems to be falling apart at the seams as the result of his wife Marianne's (Karne-Lise Mynster) attraction to co-worker Martin (Oliver Appelt Nielson). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide