Open Hearts
(2003)
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In Susanne Bier's achingly tender drama, filmed according to the tenets of the Dogme 95 collective, the fates of two couples are forever altered in the blink of an eye. Joachim (Nicolaj Lie Kaas) and Cecilie (Sonja Ricther) are a young couple on the verge of marriage. But before they can make it official, a car hits Joachim, leaving him paralyzed. It turns out the driver of the car, Marie (Paprika Steen), is the wife of Niels (Mads Mikkelsen), a doctor at the local hospital. Niels offers Cecilie a shoulder to cry on, and when a tormented Joachim sends her away, she takes Niels up on his offer. What begins as a harmless connection between two strangers quickly turns into something else, as Niels finds himself falling in love with Cecilie. Gradually, Marie begins to sense something is amiss, until the truth finally comes out, destroying their relationship in the process. A sudden change of heart from Joachim forces Cecilie to decide which man she wants to spend her life with. Like the most successful Dogme films (FESTEN, MIFUNE), Bier boldly mixes a melodramatic storyline with a documentary-like visual approach to create a work that is deeply affecting, and wholly believable. |
The 28th feature to be shot in adherence to the Dogme aesthetic, this utilises the austere restrictions of the movement to focus wholly on the raw emotions of doctor Mads Mikkelsen and twentysomething cook Sonja Richter. The pair are brought together when Mikkelsen's wife, Paprika Steen, is involved in a road accident that leaves Richter's fiancé, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, paralysed from the neck down. The most intriguing thing about this story is the way director Susanne Bier explores the inevitability of the attraction, while refusing to blame either Mikkelsen for betraying his family or Kaas for driving Richter away through his rage and bitterness. Although all the performances are exceptional, it's the fact that all of the characters are portrayed as worthy of our compassion that makes this drama so compelling.
Halliwell's Film Guide
Heartfelt drama of love and loss, and the unexpected event that can alter many lives, told in the plain, straightforward manner of a Dogme film