No. 77 (2021) RIDERS OF JUSTICE. SEPT. 28th.

 

Film No. 77 (2021)  September 28th.  6:30 PM   Cinema 1  LUNA,  Leederville. 

"I think that you have the right to know that it wasn't an accident"(Otto informs Markus that the death of his wife may not have been the accident that the authorities believe to be the case).

Cinema of the Absurd has always been an element of the arts which divides audiences because a sense of the bazar is often the underlying strand and each and every individual's sense of humour differs. There are those who will be shocked at the way very serious themes are highlighted in RIDERS OF JUSTICE.

Mads Mikkelsen once again stars in another Danish marque film. After the accolades he received in Academy Award winner ANOTHER ROUND he returns, this time as the tortured, brooding Markus, an army commando called home from duty to grieve and care for his daughter Mathilde (Andrea Heick-Gadeberg) after the sudden death of wife Emma (Anne Birgitte Lind).

Otto (Nikolaj Lie-Kaas) feels partly to blame for Emma's death due to a sliding-doors moment. He was nearby and because of his over active, mathematical mind feels that the accident causing Emma's death was not in fact, an accident. The police are not interested in his theory so he presents his prognostications to Markus. From here, perhaps the film could be re-titled a A SERIES OF VERY UNFORTUNATE EVENTS!

Where is the absurdity in these descriptions I hear you ask? The script, that's where. Writer/director Anders Thomas Jensen is a unique story teller. His off beat family farce MEN & CHICKEN (2015) gave an insight to his style. He loves to highlight unconventional characters, in extreme circumstances with strands of Pythonesque substance. Mix that with gratuitous violence and you have ROJ. This will not be for everyone. I loved RIDERS OF JUSTICE. It's fresh, it's sharp, it's funny, it's got Mads doing great work once again. 10GUMS.