In late 1990s Danish film industry was becoming one of the more interesting in Europe. Some of that could be credited to Lars von Trier and other members of Dogme 95 movement, but at least some Danish film makers took more inspiration from the likes of Quentin Tarantino. One of those is Lasse Spang Olsen whose speciality is in the realms of action comedy. Best known of his works is 1999 film In China They Eat Dogs.
Protagonist is Arvid (played by Dejan Čukić), quiet and mild-mannered bank teller whose life is going to be completely changed in one day. The banks he works in becomes a target of a bank robber. Arvid acts instinctively and incapacitates the robber with a squash racquet. When he returns home he receives anything but hero’s welcome. It turns out that his girlfriend Henne (played by Trine Dyrholm) has left him. To make things worse, robber’s girlfriend Astrid (played by Line Kruse) comes to him and tearfully tells that her boyfriend went to rob the bank only in order to finance her IVF procedure. Arvid finds himself ashamed of what he has done and decides to correct mistake by obtaining money by heist that he would conduct himself. The problem is that he lacks professional experience and personnel for the job. Solution could be provided by his older brother Harald (played by Kim Bodnia), restaurant owner who is involved in crime. Harald after some hesitation agrees to help, but things don’t go as planned and instead brothers set in motion series of bizarre and increasingly violent events on Copenhagen streets. All those events are narrated in one Copenhagen bar by Richard (played by Lester Viesse), American professional gambler who came there to meet Arvid.
Some of the critics saw In China They Eat Dogs as nothing more than a cheap copy of Tarantinoesque black comedies about criminal enterprises going wrong and ending in bloodshed. On the other hand, Olsen, who is also an experienced stuntman, has worked very hard to put more emphasis on the action, especially in the second part of the film. He did despite relatively low budget, using seemingly Copenhagen exteriors in a way that made spiral of violence and senseless killings look funny. In China They Eat Dogs also has rather unusual ending due to rather unexpected twist, but that particular ending also looks a little bit too “clever” for this kind of film. Olsen’s film, on the other hand, benefits a lot from excellent cast, mainly Kim Bodnia as psychopathic criminal and Dejan Čukić as genuinely nice young man who, due to specific set of circumstances, begins to follow his brother’s bloody path. Some critics didn’t like large amount of nihilistic violence and there were some, especially in USA, that were revolted by small detail near the end which made Olsen’s film look “politically incorrect” in its treatment of gay people. Despite that, In China They Eat Dogs is very funny and entertaining film, especially those with a taste for dark comedies. Its success was such that there were even rumours about Hollywood remake starring Harvey Keitel and Christian Slater. In 2002 Olsen directed a prequel under title Old Men in New Cars.
RATING: 7/10 (+++)
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