Review of Copenhagen (2014) by Thedrauch — 09 Dec 2014
A remarkable charmer, one that is much more entertaining and potent than it had any right to be. Sure, the trope of a romance that develops into full-on-love in a single night is groan-inducing, in theory and practice in practically any film (save the Before series, though those movies still have their moments of plot implausibility).
There are moments when Copenhagen is far too cutesy and formulaic. But, in spite of its contrivances, there is also a consistency in the way it surprises you with the subtle courting of the central couple.
If this film had been promoted better, it could've become a decently successful, if a bit shameless, rom-com. Gethin Anthony of Game of Thrones makes for a surprisingly strong male lead, offering bits of scathing dickery to offset an absolute likability, instead opting for surprising depth of character (at least by rom-com standards, anyway).
The young actress in this film, Frederikke Dahl Hansen, is quite magnetic. She reminds me of the sensuality of Maria Schneider in Last Tango in Paris, but in a hushed sense. There are characters in Copenhagen that feel undernourished, most egregiously is Gethin's best friend, who weaves in and out of the plot and exits the film in an unsatisfying manner.
The same could be said of the conclusion of the central, driving, plot behind the romance, wherein our hero finally tracks down his grandfather. I feel that this is where some punches are pulled that really could've fleshed out the main character, but the final conversation between the two is brief and almost un-confrontational, leaving our romantic lead's relationships with fathers a bit more cliched and nondescript than I'd prefer.
On the whole though, Copenhagen surprised me immensely, especially as a debut picture. I hope that Gethin is able to find more roles like this, post his GOT character's death. He is incredibly charming and dimensional, and the same could be said of the lead actress.
One of the most underrated, verging-on-mainstream films of the year.
This review of Copenhagen (2014) was written by Thedrauch on 09 Dec 2014.
Copenhagen has generally received positive reviews.
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