A realistic, moving, and occasionally violent look at the stigmas of conservative Danish society in the 1950s, where a son's selfless devotion to his sick and abused mother can be threatened by his own father's insensitivity and cruelty. This is by far my favourite work by Bille August because it shows that there are much deeper and more complicated issues lurking beneath the cliché of coming-of-age drama about irresponsible rock and roll youth. These problems aren't always amenable to adequate solutions. The genuine friendship and the development of a young man's personality who has chosen the path of brave opposition to the omnipotence of the older patriarchal generation seem more important than the drama of first love and first betrayal.This film still leaves you in awe and shock even nearly 40 years later. I should also mention that the young Lars Simonsen, who you probably know best for playing the lead antagonist in the first season of "Broen," won the main male award for this performance at MIFF in 1985.
