A Royal Affair: Denmark sticks its toe into the Age of Enlightenment

The historical costume drama A Royal Affair begins when a teenage noblewoman is married off to a mad king.  The king benefits from the companionship of a new doctor.  The doctor is a man of the Enlightenment, and finds a kindred spirit in the young queen, which leads to… Amazingly enough, all this actually happened in late 18th century Denmark.

It’s a romance and tragedy of operatic depth, and, unfortunately, operatic length.  It would make a gripping 90-minute film, but A Royal Affair slogs through 137 minutes.   As a result the sharpness of the tragedy becomes dulled into mere grimness.

A Royal Affair is a showcase for the charismatic Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen (After the Wedding), who plays the doctor.  Mikkelsen is probably best known as the James Bond villain with the tears of blood.  Newcomer Mikkel Boe Folsgaard cleverly plays the mad king by focusing on his lack of impulse control and his involuntary giggle and growls.

A Royal Affair won the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and is considered a contender for the Foreign Language Oscar.

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