One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Even though this is not a perfect movie, it still does nothing really wrong either and this movie is basically being a great example of how to do a great and effective, more classic type, of thriller.The movie combines many different genre elements and it keeps throwing you around. Is it going to be a horror? Is it going to be psychological thriller? Is it going to be a thriller involving a serial killer? Every time you think you have the movie all figured out it does something new and surprising. So really, it's best to simply watch this movie, without knowing what it truly is going to be all about.And the good news about the movie as well is that it handles all of its many different themes effectively. When the movie is supposed to be horror like it's being really horror like with its atmosphere and buildup and when the movie is supposed to be more thriller like it's really being suspenseful and mysterious. What I also liked was that the movie was having some clear Giallo genre movie elements in it but then again, every modern horror/thriller involving a killer is being in one way or another derivative of the classic Italian Giallo genre.It really was foremost the atmosphere of the whole movie that kept it going and suspenseful and interesting. The story itself, when you really start to dissect it is being quite standard for its genre. Yet the movie still manages to surprise you, due to the way it handles certain scenes and its typical genre ingredients, such as the look and feeling it has to it.The movie also truly benefits from it that it has some good and likable characters in it. No cocky kids, or persons who think they know best and are afraid of nothing but instead some real people, with real fears and emotions. Yes, it might be true that the characters feel that way simply just because this is a Danish production, which of course has a different approach and feeling to it than a more standardized and stylized Hollywood production. Or perhaps it's just all due to some great casting and performances by its actors. This actually was being one of Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau's very first movie roles and he now days has a pretty decent acting career, with already also movies such as "Black Hawk Down", "Kingdom of Heaven" and the television series "Game of Thrones" behind his name.Guess there is still plenty of stuff you could complain about, such as the lack of blood and gore, while there was plenty of opportunity for it, or that the killer gets revealed far before the finale and end of the movie but that doesn't take away anything from the fact that this is simply being a very effective genre movie, that's perfectly watchable, even on repeated viewings.8/10 http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Nattevagten (1994) (aka Nightwatch) is a stylish thriller/horror from Denmark. I just finished watching it and I was blown away. It's the most edge-of-your-seat thriller I've seen since A Tale of Two Sisters. This guy, Ole Bornedal, plots like a devil! The way he sets everything up is masterful. The script is so tight, practically every element that's established is later on used. Reminded me of early Coen brothers scripts. It also provides the viewer with sufficient food for thought, what with its underlying themes about the connection between sex and death, man's self-destructive tendencies versus his instincts for survival and self-preservation, and more.There are a lot of creepy sequences, and one or two boo moments. The soundtrack is excellent. There's one unforgettable scene where something hideous happens to the sounds of this cheery, boppin' Danish song that seems to repeat the same verse over and over again. The result is very disturbing.The style contains a lot of Hitchcockian characteristics, and the movie is done so well that it would have made Hitchcock proud. Everything is pulled off perfectly, and not once do we hear the gears of the plot grinding.Considering how little known this movie is, I was very pleasantly surprised. I highly recommend it.P.S. The main actor has a striking resemblance to Ewan McGregor, who reprised the role in the American remake three years later.

I really wanted to like this movie, I'd read about it for years before it finally came out on video here. Maybe my expectations were too high. Really, I don't know what everyone else is raving about here, I thought this was a very average thriller. I'm not surprised this was remade by hollywood, as the plot and characters and dialogue already seem quite "hollywood" influenced to me in this original, though with that careful european touch, which really just made the movie seems slow to me.I thought this movie was going to be atmospheric and creepy, but there was hardly any atmosphere at all, the direction was pretty dry and by-the-numbers. There were maybe 15 minutes filled with scary going-ons, and the rest was quite slow and talky, with no sense of buildup or dread whatsoever. The red herrings and forshadowing were so obvious in this, it was like getting slapped in the face.Like I said, I went into this with good intentions. I like horror from extreme gore, to atmospheric chillers, from "Dead Alive" to "The Others. This movie filled neither of these needs. Not so much bad, as just average. I suppose if all you watch is mainstream hollywood films, or if you liked that pointless piece of crud "With a Friend Like Harry", then this will probably seem great to you.

'Nightwatch' is genuinely creepy Danish thriller full of suspense and interesting uncliched characters. Writer/director Ole Bornedal really knows how to hook a viewer by creating a likeable hero, then throwing him in the deep end. We really feel for Martin (Nikolaj Coster-Wadeu) and want to somehow see him get out of the dangerous mess he unexpectedly finds himself in! This movie has plenty of twists without getting gimmicky, and is helped enormously by the first rate cast of unknown (to an English language audience) actors, all of whom are well cast and convincing. One of the oddest things about this movie is that the American remake was not only inferior, but actually directed by Bornedal himself. American remakes of European movies are almost always poor, but this is one of the few examples of the same director being responsible for both. (One other springs to mind - George Sluizer's brilliant 'Spoorloos', remade by himself as the hugely disappointing 'The Vanishing'). Maybe this says a lot about Hollywood and the behind the scenes compromises movie audiences are rarely privy to. Anyway, steer clear of the crappy remake, and try to see this the superb original. Along with Amenabar's similarly taut and claustrophobic 'Tesis' it is one of the most effective and entertaining thrillers of the last decade.