13/10/2005

Manslaughter [+see also:
trailer
film profile], Per Fly’s third film in his societal trilogy was awarded yesterday at the Danish Film Institute the prestigious Nordic Council Film Prize, beating 9 other Nordic films including the Norwegian film Hawaii, Oslo [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and the Swedish A Hole In My Heart. The award will be handed over with a €47,000 cash prize to be shared equally between the director, the producer Ib Tardini from Zentropa Entertainment, and the scriptwriters Kim Leona, Dorte Høgh, Mogens Rukov and Per Fly, during the annual session of the Nordic Council on October 26 in Reykjavik.

The jury explained its choice with the following statement: "Manslaughter demonstrates that actions always carry consequences. The film runs through the entire register of realism, reciting a tough story in a simple form, but without compromising its complexity…". "It is a great Nordic film which speaks from the heart about timeless issues but does so in the language of our time and on its own terms".

Starring Jesper Christensen, Beate Bille and Pernille August, the film focuses on the Danish intellectual middle-class whereas the first film of the trilogy The Bench dealt with the working class and Inheritance with the upper class.
. The film follows 52-year-old married high school teacher Carsten who has an affair with a former student, Pil, an extreme left wing activist. One night Pil is part of a raid which goes wrong and a policeman is killed. Pil is arrested and Carsten leaves his wife to support Pil.
Released in Denmark on August 26 by Nordisk, the film has now sold over 317,000 tickets and is still playing in over 60 cinemas. Trust Film Sales handles international sales.