Liaison royale

A very nice movie about a very interesting historical event. I would really love to know how today’s Danes look at this part of their history. The performances are flawless and overall it’s so perfectly tuned that I never got bored, in spite of it pretty long run – and I’m certainly not a fan of historical dramas. Who is crazy? The King or someone who sincerely believes the world was created in six days? (2012-12-14)

Satisfaction in every way. Who would have thought that such a small European film from Danish history could please us so much? We know that our experience of the Enlightenment was not exactly a walk in the Garden of Eden, so why not feel more European thanks to our common roots? Virtually no European country has had anything to merit progress, so the social unrest of the last three centuries is just the result of honest disillusionment. And that's what this film is about. And as a bonus, of course, there's the sharply cut face of Mads Mikkelsen, who can play any role and it will always have a charge of forbidden delight. Plus, of course, the excellent sets, costumes, and drama. (2012-08-21)

A gauntlet thrown down to the American and British often extremely overdone aristocratic tea parties of yesteryear. Although there are about twenty or so shots that alternate the brooding twenty-second glances of the two main characters, fortunately it’s not that bad. Whether the nobility actually practiced such body language in the past is hard to say, but it is extremely negative for the viewer's attention. In A Royal Affair, the European directorial signature is apparent very early on. It's a lush, suitably flamboyant piece with costumes and sets, the pace of which is linearly escalating as the running time draws to a close. The last five minutes are pure directorial magic and the story of the false accusation of a member of the court takes a fantastic turn, almost to the point of tragedy of gigantic proportions. The history of Denmark isn't well known, but this film makes you want to devour it from A to Z. This is where Alicia Vikander's incredible talent was apparently discovered. It's not 100 percent there yet, like The Danish Girl or The Light Between Oceans, but the potential cannot be denied. (2017-02-03)

The film features a quality cast. Mads Mikkelsen has rightfully gained recognition among viewers worldwide. The direction is decent, albeit conservative, but the weakness of the film is the screenplay, which cannot avoid excessive melodrama and black-and-white characters, as well as the schematic and simplistic depiction of historical processes. It's a 3-and-a-half-star rating, but considering the subject matter and my connection to enlightenment, this time I lean toward a higher rating. Overall impression: 70%. (2013-10-01)

Solid work in every way, but perhaps too solid and classic. For me, the film was lacking anything that would easily provoke and break the nobility, predictability and didactic nature. However, it must be admitted that in grasping the theme of the Enlightenment (egalitarianism) and the defense of the rights of ordinary people against the arbitrariness of the nobility and the Church, this film goes much further than Ridley Scott's latest films, at least because it focuses on the practical side of equality and challenges the character of the "liberator". In addition, it works well as a love triangle - particularly the character of King Christian is great and can be viewed in different ways. Even though it's very dumbed-down and sometimes too melodramatic, it's still a film that's worth it - it doesn't offend, it doesn't think of the viewer as an idiot, and it tries to think indirectly about current problems. The result is cautious, but quite sympathetic. (2012-04-05)