Teddy Bear (2012/I)

Director:

Mads Matthiesen

Writers:

Mads Matthiesen (screenplay) &
Martin Zandvliet (screenplay)

Release Date:

22 August 2012 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The 38-year-old bodybuilder Dennis would really like to find true love. He has never had a girlfriend...

Plot Keywords:

Thailand | Pattaya | Bodybuilder | 38 Year Old | Tattoo

Awards:

4 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Kim Kold	...	Dennis
David Winters	...	Scott
Elsebeth Steentoft	...	Ingrid
Lamaiporn Hougaard	...	Toi
Chanicha Shindejanichakul	...	Receptionist
Barbara Zatler	...	Sasha
John Winters	...	Jeff
Mia Maria Back	...	Shop assistant
Patrick Johnson	...	Lars
Prap Poramabhuti	...	Prap
Paweena Im-Erb	...	Nok
Eva Thompson	...	Girl at Inn
Per Otto Bersang Rasmussen	...	Real estate agent
Songporn Na Bangchang	...	Nuu
Sukianya Suwan	...	Aoi
Sukunya Mongkol	...	Phatnay
Allan Mogensen	...	Bent
Suracha Yaemsri	...	Cap driver 2
Izabella Olsen-Østergaard	...	Stewardess
Kim Lund	...	Man on plane
Charlotte Winther Hohenhaus	...	Cook
Sam Rai	...	Tailor
Somchai Morya	...	Motorcycle Lessor
Suwasan Kanta-Anontapon	...	Piccolo 1
Kritsania Promsiriruk	...	Miss Mayflower
Preutsaran Detcheewa	...	Piccolo 2
Chatkrit Permpanich	...	Cap driver 1

Directed by
Mads Matthiesen

Writing credits
Mads Matthiesen		(screenplay) &
Martin Zandvliet		(screenplay)

Produced by
Oliver Ackermann	....	supervising producer
Michael Fleischer	....	executive producer
Morten Revsgaard Frederiksen	....	executive producer
Peter Hyldahl	....	executive producer
Morten Kjems Juhl	....	producer
Karoline Leth	....	executive producer
Chris Lowenstein	....	supervising producer
Roar Skau Olsen	....	co-producer
Birgitte Skov	....	executive producer
Karin Trolle	....	line producer
Mikael Windelin	....	co-producer

Original Music by
Sune Martin

Cinematography by
Laust Trier-Mørk

Film Editing by
Adam Nielsen

Casting by
Gro Therp		(as Gro Therp Bremer)

Production Design by
Thomas Bremer

Set Decoration by
Eva Maria Hartvie Lund

Costume Design by
Rebekka Leve
Pong Somprasertsuk
Ped Sriwattana Wedreungvit

Makeup Department
Toon Vichu Chavasit	....	makeup artist
Sofie de Mylius	....	assistant makeup artist
Rebekka Leve	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Piyaporn Indageha	....	unit production manager: Thailand
Karin Trolle	....	production manager: Denmark

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Tan Pipatpolkul	....	first assistant director: Thailand
Emil Sparre-Ulrich	....	first assistant director

Sound Department
Peter Albrechtsen	....	sound designer
Peter Albrechtsen	....	sound re-recording mixer
Morten Green	....	sound re-recording mixer
Torben Greve	....	foley artist
Mikkel Groos	....	dialogue editor
Mikkel Groos	....	sound recordist
Stanko Lugonja	....	sound recordist intern
Peter Mendonca	....	dolby sound consultant
Mikkel Nielsen	....	sound effects recordist
Timothy Nielsen	....	sound effects recordist
Rune Palving	....	sound effects editor
Jacques Pedersen	....	sound editor
Lars Rasmussen	....	sound effects recordist
Peter Thorneman	....	sound recordist

Camera and Electrical Department
Tao Ahler	....	first assistant camera: Denmark
Niklas Fusager	....	lighting assistant: Denmark
Adalsteinn Hallgrimsson	....	digital imaging technician: Denmark
Tobias Juhl	....	gaffer: Denmark
José Luis Martínez Díaz	....	digital imaging technician: Spain
Jacob Møller	....	lighting technician: Denmark
Linn Sandholm	....	still photographer: Denmark
Jacob Sofussen	....	clapper-loader: Denmark
Berm Prasong Suksomkorn	....	assistent camera: Thailand
Tieng Theppitak Thengdee	....	gaffer: Thailand

Casting Department
Aou Thitaya Suthipaet	....	casting

Editorial Department
Christian Einshøj	....	additional editor

Other crew
Annemarie Aaes	....	script supervisor: Denmark
Melek Caglar	....	production assistant: pre-production
Pelle Folmer	....	lab coordinator
Andreas Hjortdal	....	production coordinator: Denmark
Araya Nakkate	....	location manager: Thailand
Niels Skafte-Pedersen	....	production assistant: Denmark
Niels Skafte-Pedersen	....	runner: Denmark
Lennart Storgaard	....	location manager: Denmark
Karin Trolle	....	production coordinator: Thailand
Mikael Zilmer	....	extras coordinator: Denmark

Thanks
Lars Rasmussen	....	thanks

Production Companies

• SF Film Production
• Beofilm (co-production)
• Minerva Film (co-production)

Distributors

• Film Movement (2012) (USA) (theatrical)
• StraDa Films (2012) (Greece) (theatrical)
• Vertigo Média Kft. (2013) (Hungary) (theatrical)
• Shoval Film Production (2012) (Israel) (all media)

Other Companies

• Dolby Laboratories  sound mix
• Living Films  production services: Thailand

Also Known As:

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

Denmark

Language:

Danish | Thai | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Denmark:A | USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Denmark

Company:

SF Film Production

"Some day love will find you; break those chains that bind you"

"Some day love will find you; break those chains that bind you" - "Separate Ways," Journey.

I hope and wish on the brightest star I see tonight that Mads Matthiesen's Teddy Bear finds an audience not only in its home-country of Denmark, but in America, which is so accustomed to its spontaneous, mostly empty cinema that it's ridiculously easy and sickeningly common for small, human-driven pictures like this to go far below the radar. This is a stunning, poignant, masterful work involving immensely undiscovered talent, sensitive writing, smooth directing, and a storyline that is pure and viably sustainable when taken in the format presented.

Dennis is a thirty-eight year old bodybuilder, living with his controlling, domineering mother (Elsebeth Steentoft) who has kept him a shy, secluded introvert his entire life. Despite boasting a strong, incredibly toned exterior, his interior paints a feeble man three times smaller than him. He has never had a true relationship, and slogs through his days depressed and uninspired. His morose feelings only heighten upon visiting his uncle's wedding to a lovely Thai woman, and not long after, seeing his nephew so lonely and melancholy in live, encouraging Dennis to travel to Thailand to try and meet some women.

He lies and tells his mother that he will be competing in a bodybuilding competition in Germany, and then quickly boards a plane to Thailand. A close friend of his uncle's attempts to set him up with several different girls, but the fact they're all prostitutes unsettles Dennis and he becomes nervous and hasty around all of them. He finally meets a young, genial soul named Toi (Lamaiporn Sangmanee Hougaard), who owns a gym, and he believes he has found the one he'd love to form a relationship with; now if only his mother will approve of it.

Dennis is played by former bodybuilder Kim Kold to a bold, graciously welcoming extent. His character greatly reminds me of myself in some ways; he hungers for the attention of the opposite sex, but is unsure of how to balance it and handle it all once obtaining it. He struggles to maintain a consistent conversation, is notably tense and socially inept during the simplest little get-together, and feels gridlocked to long pauses and dialog that lacks confidence. This is a negative affect of the heavy nurturing of his mother, who seems to keep him well-fed and unambitious in not his dreams but his social life.

The way writers Matthiesen and Martin Zandvliet handle this delicate material is astonishingly poetic and nuanced. They stray far, far away from shouting matches between Dennis and his mother about "taking care of me" and other mother-son issues, and fights between Dennis and Toi about "growing up." We see from our scenes with them together that Toi knows exactly what the deal is between Dennis and his mom and prefers not to further belittle him for the minor baggage. She'd much rather go the extra mile to make the relationship as a whole work well.

Teddy Bear is also photographed with that beautifully melodic foreign film sensitivity that combines minimalist cinematography and gorgeously showcased settings that add fuel to this as a visually compelling picture much less a narratively compelling one. But it's inexcusable to note the majority of the film's success comes from its leading man, Kold, who completely handles this role with the utmost capability and realism. He provides us with one of the finest performances of the year, and with one of the year's most likable protagonists as well.

Starring: Kim Kold, Lamaiporn Sangmanee Hougaard, and Elsebeth Steentoft. Directed by: Mads Matthiesen.