Mads Mikkelsen Archives | Deep Focus Review

Another Round

Brian Eggert — Sat, 12 Jul 2025 14:56:24 +0000

Thomas Vinterberg’s Another Round dances on the ledge between tragedy and comedy, chaos and clarity. The Danish filmmaker fortifies his 2020 release, winner of the Oscar for Best International Feature and many other awards, not only with a superb ensemble cast headlined by Mads Mikkelsen’s outstanding performance, but also with a balance of puckish energy and philosophical depth. He opens the film with a quote from Kierkegaard: “What is youth? A dream. What is love? The content of the dream.” Vinterberg frames youth as a fleeting time of passion that becomes muted as one grows older. From there, he thoughtfully explores the midlife crises among men who run an impulsive experiment involving alcohol—a somewhat ill-advised attempt to recapture the dream of youth and renew their dispirited lives. Their reckless revival efforts put their careers and personal lives at risk for an experiment that awakens some and sends others further into a downward spiral. Just like the characters, the film, too, alternates between high and low, playful and sobering, pickled and profound. The full review is currently exclusive to Patreon subscribers. To read it, you can purchase individual access. Or you can join Deep Focus Review’s Patron community, where you’ll receive […]

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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Brian Eggert — Sat, 24 Jun 2023 19:52:50 +0000

James Mangold’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny—even before finishing this thought, I must interrupt. What a strange sensation to write any other director’s name but Steven Spielberg’s before an Indiana Jones title. The distinctly Spielbergian quality of every previous installment looms large over the fifth and final adventure with Harrison Ford’s whip-cracking, Nazi-punching, treasure-seeking hero. Dial of Destiny brings back what many loved about earlier entries (unabashed antifascism, family dynamics, history melded with action, et al.) and creates a compendium of those themes for Indy’s final adventure. Fortunately, the film never overdoes its moments of nostalgia or “remember when” callbacks. Instead, it’s distinct without ever feeling hollow or like fan service, and it’s touching enough to justify its existence beyond the obvious cash-grab incentive. Driven by a compelling story and soaring performances, it’s a worthy conclusion. That Spielberg chose to step aside and serve as an executive producer on the new film, leaving capable journeyman Mangold (Walk the Line, Ford v Ferrari) in charge of directing, means it’s less of a spectacle. And even though the result lacks Spielberg’s showmanship and visuality, Mangold supplies a fitting end for a beloved character. George Lucas originally conceived Indiana Jones as […]

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Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Brian Eggert — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 01:31:05 +0000

Limping to screens four years after The Crimes of Grindelwald, J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts series continues with a third entry, The Secrets of Dumbledore, which hints that Warner Bros. may have recognized the problem with their Harry Potter prequels. Newt Scamander, the Wizarding World’s awkward magizoologist played by Eddie Redmayne, never felt like a worthy main character. Although pure of heart and carrying a suitcase of various magical creatures, his shy and inward sensibilities lend themselves to a recessive supporting player, not the hero of a franchise that costs around $200 million per film. Enter Jude Law, whose charismatic version of a middle-aged Albus Dumbledore, the future headmaster of Hogwarts, manages to steal each of his scenes, not to mention the title’s intrigue and the movie’s most pivotal role. In terms of sheer narrative drive, Law’s charming and wise wizard takes the front seat in The Secrets of Dumbledore. Next to the roster of heroes and villains, Scamander feels like part of the scenery. Doubtless, Warner Bros. realized their floundering tentpole, conceived for the screen by Rowling, needed a fresh approach. Their justified concern results in the best Fantastic Beasts movie yet, though it doesn’t hold up next to the […]

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Chaos Walking

Brian Eggert — Sat, 03 Apr 2021 15:41:28 +0000

Chaos Walking has a promising setup. In the year 2257, the all-male inhabitants of a colonized planet called New World live with “Noise,” a cloudlike aura that projects their inner thoughts audibly and sometimes visually around their heads. With their feelings on display, the inhabitants live a relatively straightforward life. Women, we are told, have been wiped out in a war with the native population, a telepathic species called Spackle. The remaining human civilization resembles a Wild West settlement in the Pacific Northwest, complete with wooden buildings, horses, and hostile pioneers. When a sole woman, Viola (Daisy Ridley), crashlands on the planet, our young hero Todd (Tom Holland) learns that women do not have Noise. What’s more, Viola’s presence reveals secrets about his settlement and the planet’s past. Based on Patrick Ness’ popular YA book The Knife of Never Letting Go, the movie’s themes include questioning gender roles, colonial violence, religious zealotry, and patriarchal agendas. Despite such rich potential under the surface, however, the movie’s bland characters don’t have much on their mind. That becomes blatantly evident early on when Todd’s Noise amounts to little more than one-dimensional observations about his surroundings. When he first encounters the blonde bobbed Viola, […]

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Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Brian Eggert — Fri, 16 Dec 2016 00:00:30 +0000

Walt Disney Studios exploits their acquisition of Lucasfilm properties to the fullest with Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the first of several planned spinoff features to take place outside of the regular “Episode” series. Set just before the events of George Lucas’ original 1977 blockbuster, the Jedi-free film continues in the tradition of demystification as the prequel trilogy by setting up events in A New Hope. And while Rogue One hopes to answer several lingering questions, it doesn’t have a significant bearing on the other films beyond a marginal expansion of the mythology, allowing fans to say, “So that’s how that happened.” The primary difference between the abortive prequel trilogy and Rogue One is quite simply this: the new film isn’t terrible. Actually, it’s rather good within the finite limitations of its concept, which I plan to discuss in detail. Consider yourself forewarned that this review will reveal plot specifics, since an examination of how the story is just filler leads to my determination that, no matter how well-made or refreshingly self-serious, Rogue One is, conceptually, disposable entertainment. Director Gareth Edwards (Monsters, 2014’s Godzilla) helms this grim wartime space opera that doesn’t have the charm or breeziness of last […]

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Doctor Strange

Brian Eggert — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 00:00:20 +0000

Doctor Strange takes the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe in a bold new direction, at least it appears that way. Exploding onto the screen with some dazzling CGI and another impressive MCU ensemble, the film delves into a Harry Potter-esque world of mysticism and magic. It was directed by Scott Derrickson, whose career in subpar horror like Sinister, Sinister 2, and Deliver Us from Evil does not bode well for the production; not that the particular filmmaker matters much when it comes to the Marvel Studios assembly line. To be sure, Disney and Marvel have overseen Doctor Strange, ensuring the script by Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill meets their requirements and delivers an accessible, family-friendly product consistent with the greater MCU. The unique presence of theosophy in this entry aside, the material does not stray from the same basic MCU narrative structure accompanying their fourteen releases thus far. And that’s just fine. The Marvel Comics character debuted in the hippy-dippy sixties and inhabits a realm (multiple realms, actually) steeped in spells and black magic. Originally, Doctor Strange appealed to psychedelic users and college students open to an amalgamation of Eastern philosophies and mythology on the comic’s page. But the character’s circulation […]

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The Three Musketeers

Brian Eggert — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 00:00:45 +0000

Taking a break from videogame adaptations and sci-fi horror, director Paul W.S. Anderson tries his hand at period adventure with The Three Musketeers, a sour swashbuckler on par with Cutthroat Island, or more appropriately, The Man in the Iron Mask. Anderson’s blindly enthusiastic production feels like something straight out of The Rocketeer’s mid-1990s style. It’s backed by an eclectic cast, some genuine talents and others not too genuine, and that’s a good way to describe this film: several genuinely entertaining moments, and others so ineffective or so over-the-top that the result never feels congruous. Revamping Alexandre Dumas’ classic tale, Anderson “modernizes” the proceedings with hot-air flying ships, flamethrowers, and his wife, Milla Jovovich, running through trap-laden corridors of gunfire and razor-sharp wire (as opposed to lasers). Afterward, any sane moviegoer will be left scratching their head and asking themselves what the hell just happened. The absurdity begins with a narrated prologue that notes how the enduring conflict between England and France marks the coming “apocalypse.” One expects at any moment, typical Anderson zombies will come barreling out onto Paris’ streets as they did in Raccoon City, but perhaps he’s saving that development for the sequel—which, based on the epilogue, Anderson […]

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Valhalla Rising

Brian Eggert — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 00:00:31 +0000

Stylishly poetic and weighty to exasperating extremes, Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn’s existential, primeval epic Valhalla Rising examines the combative relationship between the honor-bound pagans and the fanatical Christians in the world of Vikings. It’s a slow-moving combination of ridiculously gory violence, heavy metal music, and dreamy imagery set to no more than one or two handfuls of dialogue. Landscapes are beautiful but spare, and the tone is methodical and unforgiving. But the result is difficult to enjoy, as the whole picture resolves to be an obvious allegory for an alternate Christ tale where the holy martyr is replaced by a primordial, one-eyed Viking with an ax. In a completely mute performance, Mads Mikkelsen (Casino Royale) plays the slave warrior called One Eye, because, as you might suspect, he has only one eye. Shackled and kept imprisoned, he’s released to fight in muddy one-on-one bouts to the death. His opponents are taken down with speed and bloody precision, and after making a kill, One Eye holds out his wrists, ready to be shackled again. Hypnotic, red-hued dreams fill his head, but it’s no wonder, with all of the carnage he purveys. This is an incredibly bloody film: Brains are bashed […]

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Clash of the Titans

Brian Eggert — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 00:00:02 +0000

Clash of the Titans is a remake of the 1981 cult classic of the same name. The original, with stop-motion animation effects by legend Ray Harryhausen, earned its status because of Harryhausen’s work on the film. And it was ripe for remaking because of its dated quality, the hammy nature of star Harry Hamlin, and the overall generic quality of the production. The creature effects, however, demand your attention, particularly the unforgettable depiction of the snake-headed Medusa. That movie knew how to incorporate fun into an adventure. It’s a movie that many youths, including myself, grew up loving. But now, looking back as an adult, the adventure is rather cheesy, dated, and even insufferable to sit through. The same can be said for the remake. But before getting into the meat of this movie, let me first make a confession to you, the reader. Warner Bros. has released Clash of the Titans in both standard and 3-D formats, and I did not see this film in 3-D. In truth, whenever there are press screenings that plan to show a movie in 3-D, I avoid them like the plague and instead, see the movie on opening day in a standard presentation. […]

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Casino Royale

Brian Eggert — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 05:00:12 +0000

Detractors have targeted the 007 franchise for its blatant sexism, dated displays of promiscuity and unsafe sex, and irresponsible treatment of violence. Fortunately, Casino Royale lessens, if not wholly removes, those Bond stereotypes, modernizing the franchise for a new, more experienced cinema-going audience capable of seeing through the series’ old downfalls. I can only hope the filmmakers sustain the style in this new vision for future 007 films. Daniel Craig, the latest actor to embody superspy James Bond, is best known for his supporting roles in Road to Perdition (2002), Munich (2005), and a leading role in the British crime thriller Layer Cake (2004). He may not have the same easy good looks as Sean Connery or Pierce Brosnan, but he has an intensity that advances the character from a quipping hornball to a role that demands depth in the eyes and straightness in the mouth. Furthermore, Craig’s performance allows viewers to believe something is going on in his head, beyond mere bedroom exploits and instead implies his weighted pathos. Casino Royale is a prequel, in that it was based on the first of the James Bond novels by Ian Fleming and begins with Bond as a rookie double-oh. But […]

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