The Danish news agency Ritzau reports that Anders Thomas Jensen’s 2000s dark-comedy Flickering Lights (Danish title: Blinkende Lygter) was found to be Danes’ favorite Danish film ever made. The study was conducted by the data analytics firm YouGov for the Danish streaming service Nordisk Film+. A total of 1,529 Danes in the 18 to 79 age range participated in CAWI-interviews for the study, which has ultimately resulted in a top ten list that includes two film series (each counted as a single film). Interestingly, a total of nine films (including one of the film series) that were released have all come out in the last forty years, and, incredibly, a film released during the COVID-era placed second!
Danes’ Top Ten Favorite Films, according to the aforementioned YouGov study:
- “Flickering Lights (2000 – Danish Title: Blinkende Lygter)” — Directed by Anders Thomas Jensen.
- “Another Round (2020 – Danish Title: Druk)” — Directed by Thomas Vinterberg.
- “The One and Only (1999 – Danish Title: Den Eneste Ene)” — Directed by Susanne Bier.
- The Olsen Gang-Films (1968-1998 – Danish: Olsen Banden-Filmene) — Directed by Erik Balling (13 films), and Tom Hedegaard & Morten Arnfred (1 film).
- “Adam’s Apples (2005 – Danish Title: Adams Æbler)” — Directed by Anders Thomas Jensen.
- “The Green Butchers (2003 – Danish Title: De Grønne Slagtere)” — Directed by Anders Thomas Jensen.
- “The Hunt (2012 – Danish Title: Jagten)” — Directed by Thomas Vinterberg.
- The Department Q-Films (2013-? – Danish Title: Afdeling Q) — Directed by Mikkel Nørgaard (2 films), Hans Petter Moland (1 film), Christoffer Boe (1 film), Martin Zandvliet (1 film), and Ole Christian Madsen (1 film).
- “Nightwatch (1994 – Danish Title: Nattevagten)” — Directed by Ole Bornedal.
- “In China, They Eat Dogs (1999 – Danish Title: I Kina Spiser De Hunde)” — Directed by Lasse Spang Olsen.
Filmmakers like Thomas Vinterberg and Anders Thomas Jensen are well-represented, as are actors like Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Mads Mikkelsen (e.g. they both appear in memorable supporting roles in the most popular film on the list), who are generally regarded as being the most popular working actors in Denmark these days. Susanne Bier, whose In a Better World (Danish Title: Hævnen) won an Oscar at the 83rd Academy Awards, is represented on the list through her 1999 hit The One and Only, and she is also the only female director on the list.
When it comes to notable omissions, it is interesting that neither Lone Scherfig, who has several English-languaged films in her filmography, nor Lars Von Trier, the world-famous auteur and provocateur, are represented on the list. It is also interesting that the most notable Dogme95 (a filmmaking movement founded by Lars Von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg) film The Celebration (Danish Title: Festen) is nowhere to be found on the list, even though it once earned the Vinterberg hit Jury Prize at Cannes. One might argue that the subject matter of The Celebration is too dark to have on a ‘most popular’ list, but, then again, The Hunt did in fact make it onto the list in spite of how serious its subject matter is. Drive-director Nicolas Winding Refn hasn’t found his way onto the top ten in spite of his Pusher-films being quite well-regarded.
I should also say that it is quite strange to see that someone like Dirch Passer, a beloved and celebrated actor and comedian who passed away in 1980, isn’t represented on the list, even though he has appeared in many popular ‘classics.’ Speaking of classics, renowned Danish director Carl Th. Dreyer also isn’t on the list in any way, shape, or form, although given that his most well-known works were released in the early-to-mid 20th century, it isn’t all that much of a surprise — though it would be interesting to find out where the highest Dreyer film placed given the age range of the study.
– Article Written by Jeffrey Rex Bertelsen.
I'm Jeffrey Rex 