Northwest (Nordvest) (NR)

synopsis

Eighteen-year-old Casper, who lives in the infamous Nordvest suburb of Copenhagen with his mother, brother Andy and sister Freya, is a talented housebreaker who makes ends meet committing burglaries for neighbourhood boss Jamal. When a rival gangster, Bjorn, makes Caspar an offer of more lucrative terms and, perhaps, the promise of advancement through the ranks of his very white Danish family , the enraged Jamal is not prepared to tolerate defection; things violently escalate, placing the teenager and his family at the centre of a toxic conflict. What could be a predictable genre tale is elevated far above the ordinary by director Noer s fresh script and restrained approach, and by Gustav Dyekjær Giese s natural and powerful performance. His remarkable stillness only serves to intensify Casper's inner turmoil.