JOURNAL 64

Denmark

Synopsis

Two workmen make an alarming discovery in an older Copenhagen apartment:
hidden behind a false wall are three mummified corpses, sitting around a dining
table with one empty seat left.
The case quickly ends up on the desk of Detective Superintendent Carl Mørck and
his assistant, Assad, and it is up to them to figure out, who the mummies are as
well as who the fourth seat is meant for.
Carl and Assad put all effort in to finding the tenant of the apartment and they end
up finding clues tracing back to the notorious institution for ’wayward’ girls on the
island of Sprogø, where extreme neglect and medical experiments in forced
sterilization are a part of everyday life.
Even though the horrors of Sprogø are a closed chapter in Danish history, there are
now people claiming the experiments have continued to go on up until today. Carl
and Assad start a race against time to prevent new murders and attacks from
happening.

Director's Statement

THE PURITY OF VENGEANCE is about abuse. Men abusing women,
institutions that suppress the individual and a society that turns
the blind eye. It's a compelling revenge story about a brave woman
who rises like a Phoenix and gets her revenge.
The story uses the opportunities of the genre to investigate the
darkness and dissects the human being to see what it is capable
of. Crime fiction is fantastic at cultivating the big emotions
because of the interesting crime stories, are driven by passion –
love, revenge or idealism – and in THE PURITY OF VENGEANCE we have
it all.
Wad is the idealistic criminal who in his pursuit of his
idealistic goals will do anything. Nete is the victim who becomes
the executioner in her pursuit of revenge – but her character is
also rounded by her big love for Tage. And in the middle – the
man, who needs to find answers, not only in the mystery but also
within, is Carl Mørck.
It's a story about power and the individuals fight for autonomy
and it will force Mørck to think about his own fights that he has
in his life. It all plays out in the perfect setting – the
metropolis.
The monocultural society is long gone. And we live in a
multicultural cosmopolitan city. Children who go to a Quran school
on the same road as the financiers who are on their way to a
meeting. Steel and glass constructions next to old brick houses
from the 18th century. We need to turn the volume button and make
Copenhagen look like a sparkling city, where the big drama and the
power of love, can unfold.

Director's Biography

2018 - THE PURITY OF VENGEANCE
2018 - WARRIOR
2013 - SEX, DRUGS & TAXATION
2011 - BEAST
2010 - EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE
2006 - OFFSCREEN
2005 - ALLEGRO
2003 - RECONSTRUCTION
 | 

Cast & Crew

Directed by: Christoffer Boe

Written by: Mikkel Nørgaard, Nikolaj Arcel, Bo Hansen

Produced by: Louise Vesth

Cinematography: Jacob Møller

Editing: Janus Billeskov Jansen, My Thordal

Production Design: Nikolaj Danielsen

Costume Design: Pernille Holm

Make-Up & Hair: Nicola Faas

Original Score: Anthony Lledo , Mikkel Maltha

Sound: Bernhard Joest

Cast: Nikolaj Lie Kaas (Carl Mørck), Fares Fares (Assad)

Nominations and Awards

  • People's Choice Award 2019