The Guilty

A beautiful, unintentional slap in the face of our current filmmakers, who whine all the time that they don't have the money to make films and when they do get it and make something, it's mostly crap. Here's proof that it's not about money – all you need is an idea, a vision and a skilled craftsman. The almost 90 minutes feel like 10, it has tension, it has an unexpected twist in the second act or so; simply, as I've been convinced lately, the Danes are on fire! (14/02/2019)

If someone told me before watching The Guilty that all it takes is one room, one man, and a telephone to create a riveting film, I would have been significantly skeptical. Nevertheless, it works. Thanks to a clever screenplay and a focused and absolutely natural Jakob Cedergren in the role of a police officer, you will witness a minimalist film that has the ability to emotionally shatter you into pieces. The Guilty is an inconspicuous and intimate piece that can easily go unnoticed in the flood of big-budget, visually spectacular action movies, which would be a shame. Therefore, I recommend listening carefully to the voice of a man who can discern, amidst a series of annoying and unnecessary phone calls, the one that leads to a cruel revelation and, with its darkness and hopelessness, breaks free from the routine of emergency hotline workers. Overall impression: 95%. (03/08/2018)

A subjectively suffered good deed and Intensive game of contrasts. Both in visual terms from the light and darkness in the two workplaces, and in auditory terms from the nervous silence and bone-chilling vibrations or ringing tones. However, I would consider its most attractive asset the semantic contrast, where the lone sentence on the recording can affect the viewer completely differently every time. I won't argue that it's more than just a suffocating genre film, but it's so well done that I will gladly join the growing buzz. (29/07/2018)

A solid debut and Danish one man show starring Jakob Cedergren. The main character is a former police officer with a troubled past who works on the 112 emergency line, and just before his shift ends he gets a call that turns his night into a stressful, exhausting and challenging one. The film takes place entirely in the office and the camera never leaves the protagonist's side for a minute. It features a realistic performance backed by decent dialogues and a fine plot, and the director delivers a solid twist at the end. The film is indeed nicely suspenseful and emotional in places, but, it didn't pull me in as much as I had hoped. Yet I give it a thumbs up and it's definitely worth seeing. 75% (06/11/2018)

Very nice, tense and surprising. The beginning and the first call with the kidnap victim are gripping, but the pace gradually crumbles due to the not very interesting personal storyline, but the credible dialogues and the strong (though not shocking) twists keep your attention throughout the decent runtime. The original way it casts doubts over who’s guilty and not guilty and the work ethic prevail over the pure formal qualities and the authenticity, and it’s not bad at all. 75% (24/01/2019)