Riders of Justice

Mathilde's bicycle gets stolen and she has to ride with her mother. The car doesn't start and they have to take a train. Computer programmer Otto claims to be making a prediction program but it has no business value. He gets fired and gets on the same train. He gives his seat to Mathilde's mother. A train accident leaves the mother dead. One of the other dead victims is a witness ready to testify against the motorcycle gang, Riders of Justice. Using statistics, Otto is certain that the accident is a deliberate attack to kill the witness. He and his friend Lennart track down Mathilde's military father Markus (Mads Mikkelsen). With Otto's hacker friend Emmenthaler, the group decides to track down a suspect in the train derailment. This is a Danish film. It's one of those shoot 'em up killing bad guys movies except it's not just that. It's funnier and more poetic. It's emotionally packed. It takes quirky turns. The characters are compelling, funny, and damaged. I can't wait for the English remake and fear it at the same time.

Another really good Scandi movie, this time hailing from Denmark, and featuring one of my favourite actors working today, Mads Mikkelsen. This is less the thriller it's sold as by the trailer and more of a study of grief and bereavement. As a recent widower, it really hit home with me, and Mikkelsen nails the complexities of the part perfectly. It's also packed full of deep characterisation, realism, perfectly judged quirky comedy, and a few fine thriller aspects to boot. Nothing not to love here.