Good start, but then it gets ruined

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

The film was still a fun one that will make you laugh and have you leaving the theater feeling like you just stole something valuable and got away with it.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

As any serious movie buff knows, existential depression is a recurring theme in Scandinavian film. Indeed, it's so prevalent, that it seems to rear its ugliness even when it's not explicit, but merely lurking in the undertones or dimming the landscapes.Bergman's gone now, but others have taken up the mantle. Levring's "Fear Me Not" is among those newer works which propagate the genre.Here, we have a middle-aged man (Mikael, a.k.a. Mik) on sabbatical, who finds himself at odds with his newfound leisure time. Almost on a whim, he becomes a test subject in his brother-in-law Frederik's drug trial for a new anti-depressant. Exhilarated at the increasing sense of freedom provided by the pills he's been given, Mik starts pushing the boundaries of his heretofore so-called normal behavior.The incident which kicks off this diversion in behavior is a brawl amongst the subjects waiting for their biweekly checkup. To his surprise, as well as to that of his doctor/brother-in-law/rowing partner, Mik participates in the tussle by punching another patient in the nose. To Mik's dismay, the rumble naturally results in the cancellation of the trial. Mik swears to Frederik that he's disposed of the remaining pills, but we know that's a lie. (What seemed odd to this viewer is that Mik was given a supply of pills to last much longer than would seem to be appropriate for a drug trial.) Relieved of regular appointments demanded by the drug trial, and seeking separation from his wife, Sigrid, whom we know is devoted, but whom Mik sees from his current point of view as increasingly controlling, Mik hies himself to his boyhood home in the country on the excuse that he's going to visit his mother, who is now in a rest home. Once there, Mik revels in being alone, and further tests his freedom by lying to a caller who's reached a wrong number by telling the caller that the intended recipient of the call has died.Liking more and more the way the pills are making him feel, Mik starts overdosing on them with no apparent ill effect. Calm and collected at all times throughout, with no indication of any abnormality in his interpersonal dealings, Mik's experimenting reaches a head when he nearly assaults a young woman who has asked him for a ride. Realizing that he's reached some sort of brink, Mik tosses the pills into the trash, only to retrieve them later, just as the trash man is about to dump them into the garbage truck.Back home, Mik decides that to regain control in his marriage, he must destroy it and rebuild it from scratch. Thus, he starts behaving like a subversive SoB, and eventually verges on becoming a homicidal maniac. In the middle of all this, as Mik is about to tell Frederik that he bedded Frederik's wife, Ellen, using the pills as an excuse, but really as the coup de grâce in destroying the relationships among all around him, Frederik tells Mik that Mik was on placebos during the drug trial, thus making Mik realize that his evil behavior was within him all along. What Mik does next is left to the viewer.This movie is well done all around: fine acting, expert directing, economical script with spare dialog, and beautiful photography. Too bad the subject is so somber. The film's greatest triumph, perhaps, is in making the mood of the audience match that of the movie itself: depressing.

"When you always try to stay in the right track, it is nice to leave it". These are the words spoken by Mikael (Ulrich Thomsen), a 42 year old man who desires a change in his life. In this Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - inspired drama, directed by Kristian Levring, Mikael is offered the opportunity to be a guinea pig and partake in a clinical trial for a new anti-depressant drug. Without even a slight hesitation, he accepts the offer to be a subject in the study, but fails to mention his involvement to either his wife Sigrid (Paprika Steen) or daughter Selma (Emma Sehested Hoeg). After a few weeks, the study is canceled due re- occurring dangerous side effects. This does not stop Mikael, who likes the way the pills make him feel and he continues on with the abandoned trial. Pretty soon, Mikael begins to lose control and no one, not even Mikael himself can predict what he will do next. Levring does an excellent job of keeping the audience on the edge of their seats throughout this suspenseful drama. One of Levring's core beliefs is that "civilization is a wonderful thing, but we need to keep in mind that people are animals who need a certain freedom". This theme can be seen in almost all of his films and we especially see this displayed in Den Du Frygter. For most of his life, Mikael worked and lived a relatively ordinary life. While this is all fine and good for the majority of people, Mikael wanted to add more excitement and have more freedom in his life. We see this when he is out rowing with his good friend Fredrick (Lars Brygmann), who happens to also be one of the lead physicians in the study, if he can be one of the test subjects. He thought taking the anti-depressants might spice up his life a bit. Granted Mikael took things a little too far, but he also had so many years of boredom and frustration building up in his life that I think he would have eventually erupted whether he took the anti-depressant drugs or not.In all the trailers I saw before actually watching Den Du Frygter, I was under the assumption that there would be a lot of violence shown in the film. This was not the case. I found this film to be interesting in the fact that it deals with some very violent situations, but it actually shows very little violence. After watching a post film interview, Levring made it clear that he did not want graphic violence to be represented because he believed it would take the audience away from focusing on the main themes and plot of the movie. I think this was a huge risk by Levring and it might ultimately steer some people away from viewing this film. For me personally, I think the omission of the graphic violence adds more suspense to the film and kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what Mikael is going to do next. In terms of the film-making, Levring adds several little details which enhance the overall quality of the film. For one, the house used in the film has lots of windows and is very wide open, which is interesting because the film deals with people who like to conceal everything. The movie could have been made incorporating several shadows and darker scenes, but instead Levring decides to go against the norm and add his own unique flare to the film. Sticking with themes in the house, Levring takes particular pride in his set designs; he strives to get away from your typical "IKEA" house that you see in other films. Having been one of the four founders of the Dogma 95 movement in Denmark, Levring likes to add more naturalness in his films. For those who might not be familiar with Dogma 95, it was a cinematic political act in response to Hollywoodization. Den Du Frygter is not considered to be a Dogma 95 film, but some aspects of the movement are still visible in the film. For example, almost everything that was actually filmed was put into the movie. Very little extra footage was left out of the film, which is common in all of the Dogma 95 movies. Also you see some infidelity in this film, which was another popular theme during the movement. Even though details like these are minute, they help the film stand out and differentiate itself. As long as you are not looking for a movie with extreme amounts of gore and violence, I think you will be pleasantly surprised with Kristian Levring's Den Du Frygter. The acting is superb, and the film pays significant attention to detail. I would recommend the movie to anyone looking for an intense thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat while trying to anticipate what will happen next.

I was disappointed to notice the relatively low collective rating for Kristian Levring's "Fear Me Not." This was one of the best psychological thrillers I've yet to see. Particularly, I think the plot twist was brilliant. I don't want to spoil the film, so I won't go into details about the twist - however, I can say that it definitely pulled me further into the story and it enhanced the film's depth and psychological implications. I also feel the setting was perfect for the protagonist's dark emotional journey. His family's home was on a vast lake within the picturesque Danish landscape. If shot in the summer, the setting would have felt completely different. However, it seems to have been filmed in the fall or early winter, which aptly portrays the cold, dark and somber environment associated with winters in Northwestern Europe. Overall, I believe that anyone who enjoys psychological thrillers would have much to become mesmerized with in this film.

Hitchcock would be proud. The art of hinting within cinema is still alive. This doesn't spell everything out for you. The trailer for this does not do it justice. I was not expecting to enjoy this as much as I did. It is a film about discontentment, control, and the urges and thoughts lying just beneath the surface. I was pleased to find that Anders Thomas Jensen helped write this, as I enjoyed Blinkende Lygter(or Flickering Lights) and Mørke(also known as Murk), the latter in particular. I would say that you can tell that he had a hand in making this. I believe this is the first film by Levring I've seen, but I certainly am taking notice to his directorial style. Interesting choices are made, among other places in framing and cutting. The editing and cinematography are definitely worth attention. The story-telling is very subtle, and the use of narration does not become a crutch. The pacing is spot-on, it never moved too slow or fast. The acting is excellent, every single performance is beyond reproach. Even the kid, and that's not something that happens all that often. The use of music is good. This can be rather intense, and proper care is taken to build up suspense. There is a little sexuality including obscured nudity, as well as a bit of language and bloodless violence in this. I recommend this to anyone who wants the themes explored for 95 minutes, and/or those who dig a great thriller. 8/10