by Nathaniel R
Mads Mikkelsen in "The Promised Land", a Danish Oscar submission finalist
We've shared this observation before but Germany and Denmark have (so far at least) been to the Oscars of the 21st century what France and Italy were to the 20th century. The two countries cannot be discounted in any upcoming Oscar race. Since 2000 Denmark has received 8 nominations and 2 wins (their grand total now being 14/4) and they've made the finals three additional times in that time span, too. Germany is Oscar's current favourite country scoring 9 nominations, 3 wins, and 5 additional finalists since 2000 (their all time stats are now 21/4). Germany has submitted the contemporary drama The Teacher's Lounge which premiered at Berlinale and will be at TIFF soon for the upcoming Oscar race. Now we know the three Danish finalists for the submission honor though their choice won't be announced until late September. They are...
APOLONIA APOLONIA by Lea Glob
A decade plus spanning documentary about the French artist (of Danish descent) Apolonia Sokol and the complexities of artistic careers and modern womanhood. It's been playing festivals for several months. Submitting documentaries has become much more common in this category in the past ten years. Denmark has only submitted one before though, the exquisite Flee (2021), which became the first film to score the 'specialty' triple with nominations in Documentary Feature, Animated Feature, and International Feature.
THE PROMISED LAND by Nikolaj Arcel
Set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September followed by an October release in Denmark (and presumably 2024 in the US), this is an 18th century biopic about Ludvig Kahlen (played by international movie star Mads Mikkelsen), a soldier who sets out to farm the barren "Jutland" (Northern Denmark) by order of the king. If submitted and nominated this will be the second Oscar round for Arcel & Mikkelsen together. Their previous Oscar-nominated collaboration was the excellent historical romance A Royal Affair (2012). The Danish title, literally translates, is also generic but bolder: The Bastard.
And finally...
Pilou Asbaek stars in "Liberation or "Before It Ends"... we're not sure which title they'll use for US release (if it gets a US release)
BEFORE IT ENDS / LIBERATION by Anders Walter
Newly released in Denmark this is a World War II drama concerning Denmark's handling of Jewish refugees. Pilou Asbaek (A War, A Hijacking, Game of Thrones) has the lead role. Though The Promised Land seems likely as a submission given Mads Mikkelsen's success in this category and his international profile, it would be foolish to count this drama out quickly. Here's why: Writer/Director Anders Walter is already an Oscar winner and has been a frequent presence in the live-action short film category, making the finals for 9 Meter (2012), winning for Helium (2013) and nominated again just last season for the haunting Ivalu (2022). This is his second feature length effort, his first being the fantasy I Kill Giants (2017).
INTERNATIONAL FILM PREDICTIONS
SUBMISSION CHART 1 - Albania through Georgia
SUBMISSION CHART 2 - Germany through Norway
SUBMISSION CHART 3 - Pakistan through Vietnam