At Night (2007)

Christmas and New Year. Three girls between 18 and 20, are hospitalized with cancer. All three of them have serious problems, not just in terms of health, but also in terms of their ... See full summary »

Director:

Christian E. Christiansen

Writer:

Christian E. Christiansen

Stars:

Julie R. Ølgaard, Laura Christensen, Neel Rønholt

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Cast overview:
Julie R. Ølgaard	...	Stephanie (as Julie Ølgaard)
Laura Christensen	...	Sara
Neel Rønholt	...	Mette
Henrik Prip	...	Torben
Rasmus Botoft	...	Martin
Teis Bayer	...	Michael
Mette Mai Langer	...	Annika

Storyline

Christmas and New Year. Three girls between 18 and 20, are hospitalized with cancer. All three of them have serious problems, not just in terms of health, but also in terms of their relationships with their nearest and dearest. The girls find a haven in each other's company, where they are free from the fear of death and loneliness, and a substantial part of the film describes their sense of humor, unrestrained candidness and uncompromising zest for life.

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Plot Keywords:

cancer | parent child relationship | new year's eve | hospital | friendship | 

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Genres:

Short | Drama

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Details

Country:

Denmark

Language:

Danish

Release Date:

19 February 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

At Night

Filming Locations:

Copenhagen, Denmark

Box Office

Budget:

DKK 2,400,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Zentropa Entertainments

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Edited into Dig og mig (2008)

User Reviews

Hard to watch--exceptionally well made

I saw this movie at a special showing by a local film society of all the Oscar nominated Live Action Shorts about a week or so before the Oscars were announced. Because of the timing, I don't know if OM NATTEN won the award or not, but I assume that it will. Part of this is because the film is so wonderfully made and part of this is because this seems like the type of film the committee normally loves--since it's so depressing and "deep".

The story is about three young women who have cancer. They are lonely and scared and turn to each other for support. Within the group is one young lady whose life if filled with regrets. In the past, she ran from her own mother's illness and hates herself for her weakness. Later, this theme becomes important to the women and plays itself out once again.

I saw this film with my teenage daughter and we both strongly disagreed on what we thought of it. She thought it was clichéd (reminding her of other films) and just not the type movie she'd like to see since it's about death and dying.

As for me, I was captivated by the exceptional writing and acting. As for the acting, I was impressed that the actors and actresses were able to cry and call upon such extreme emotions--it made it seem very real. And as for the writing, while it could have been clichéd, the interweaving of the two themes really made the film memorable. A wonderful but exceptionally difficult movie to watch.

By the way, how we both perceived the film might also have something to do with our life experiences. I had cancer years ago and so perhaps this is why the film had such impact on me.

UPDATE--Apparently I am lousy at guessing Oscars, as MOZART OF PICKPOCKETS just won the award for 2008.