Pelle the Conqueror (1987)
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Pelle the Conqueror Movie Review
Pelle the Conqueror is a 1987 Danish historical film directed by Bille August and starring Max von Sydow and Pelle Hvenegaard. It’s a solid, but overly manipulative movie.
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“You’ll have to go without me, Pelle.
I don’t have strength to travel anymore. I’m too old.
Too old. I don’t have a future. Do you understand?“
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It follows two Swedish immigrants to Denmark during the 1850s. One is a very old man and the other is his young son. The two find many difficulties and face xenophobia and hard life/jobs in their new country. Obviously the film is an important account of Danish history and it’s immensely epic as a production.
It’s evident from the first moment that this is one of the most expensive Danish films ever as it just looks splendid and it feels epic owing to its very long runtime, scope and ambition. And I have to say that they mostly succeeded in that epic feel and I did find it pleasantly traditional, charming and again highly ambitious.
However, it has one major problem and that is its emotional manipulation. Although incredibly tragic in that unforgettable ending and quite endearing in some of the other scenes, Pelle the Conqueror is mostly overly maudlin, way too manipulative and simply unlikable in how it treats its protagonists. It constantly tries to evoke pity for them instead of portraying their struggles dramatically and them as human beings, the film portrayed them as pitiful, sad beings in an effort to make the audience pity them and cry. I really disliked that.
Pelle Hvenegaard is actually stupendous in the main role and it’s awesome that the character and actor both share the same name. But this is of course Max von Sydow’s moment to shine which he did as he gave a powerhouse, deservedly Oscar-nominated performance. He’s the heart of the entire film.
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Pelle the Conqueror looks amazing. Yes, the cinematography is absolutely fantastic and again it looks epic, very realistic in its depiction of people and country life of the 1850s and it’s quite memorable in some of its imagery. The score is also good and the direction from Bille August is strong. The dialogue is very good too. It’s just that the script is one-note leading to a very repetitive, simplistic movie which simply did not need to win an Oscar for foreign film, but it wasn’t a terrible choice either.
Pelle the Conqueror is admirably ambitious in its scope and runtime, it’s simply gorgeously shot and quite realistic overall. This expensive Danish production also benefits from one powerhouse, deservedly Oscar-nominated performance from Max von Sydow and a truly heartbreaking ending. However, the film is overly repetitious in its plot, way too simplistic in approach and just so emotionally manipulative as it constantly tries to evoke pity for its protagonists in a very unsympathetic manner.
