SOME DANISH ON THE SIDE
A Royal Affair exposes something rotten
‘Something is rotten in the state of Denmark,” quotes citizen-physician Johann Friedrich Struensee in the opening act of A Royal Affair, essentially foreshadowing the next 90 minutes of screen time.
“I don’t like that one,” responds King Christian VII. And you can’t blame him: He and Prince Hamlet share a little too much in common.
Considered unfit to rule by the Danish court as well as other European leaders, Christian has largely ceded the affairs of state to the court and its religious leaders.
He doesn’t seem to mind, either, because as long as he has a harlot with big breasts to fondle and a great big carriage to cruise in, Christian is content.
Yet, something really is rotten in the state of Denmark in the midst of the 18th century. Facing the bright gleam of the Enlightenment as it spreads across Europe, Denmark has turned into the shadows of religious fear and fundamentalism.
Censorship, serfdom and personal repression are the central pillars of the current rule, but that’s before Christian and Struensee start up a friendship.
Enlisted to befriend and assess the unstable royal by progressive members of the court who still want Christian in power, but in a more malleable state of mind, Doctor Struensee (Mads Mikkelsen) accomplishes the task by trading the Bard’s dialogue with the drama-loving king (Mikkel Boe Følsgaard).
The two men become friends, with Struensee eventually becoming the king’s confidante. At one point, the king even transfers signing authority over to Struensee, effectively giving him complete legislative powers.
It’s a decision that doesn’t sit well with the other, shadier members of the court, who inevitably start sharpening the shiv — waiting for just the right moment to pounce.
Such political deceit would have been more than enough to fuel a first-rate political thriller on its own, but truth is generally juicier than fiction, which means this fact-based account of Johann Struensee’s impact on Danish society wouldn’t be complete without the sexy bits, too.
You see, Struensee didn’t just technically usurp the throne. He displaced Christian from his matrimonial bed, enjoying a long-term affair with the queen, Caroline (Alicia Vikander).
For two centuries the story was considered too racy for popular consumption and the whole Struensee narrative was underplayed or entirely removed from Danish history, yet thanks to Bodil SteensenLeth’s novel and Arcel’s film, modern-day moviegoers can relive one of the most intellectually explosive periods in human history as the revolutionary idea of human autonomy and personal freedom began to shake the very foundations of European statehood.
Struensee was a man of science who refused the superstitions of the church and its rigid ways. He read Voltaire and even penned a few treatises of his own under a pseudonym hoping he could introduce everything from modern medicine to land reform to Denmark.
Looking back from a modern perspective, Struensee is a revolutionary hero. But from where the people of Denmark sat in the mid-1700s, he was an interloper, a threat to national security and a danger to the nation’s collective morality.
It’s all high drama and in the hands of director Arcel, every little knot in this detailed needlepoint is handled to period perfection, which no doubt accounts for its presence on this year’s list of Best Foreign Language Film nominees.
The key to his success is character. Despite the altered contexts, vastly different political realities and core belief systems, Arcel creates people we recognize as real.
Whether it’s the idea of a vulnerable young queen who finds her footing with a little reassurance and courage from a worthy admirer, or the notion of a selfish, arrogant and entirely insecure king, we can feel the nooks and crannies of personality in every scene.
In turn, we’re given an all-access pass to one of the more fascinating standoffs in written history as Denmark crested the wave of revolution before the French even stormed the Bastille.
Yet the fluid mingling of monarchist power and personal freedoms was destined to curdle when it sidelined the church. Struensee seemed aware of the risks, yet persevered regardless, believing the people would stand behind their emancipator.
He is heroic, and tragic, and thanks to Mikkelsen’s razor-sharp performance, Struensee also emerges as a complete human being.
The Danish actor with the striking face has already proven his abilities as a villain, thanks to his unforgettable, crotch-smashing turn in Casino Royale as Le Chiffre, yet he uses the same dark intensity to power his performance as Struensee by letting us feel his outrage at the social injustice that surrounds him.
When he dismounts his horse to help a peasant who’s been whipped to death, his surging, determined steps speak of action. His face wears emotion, and his whole body seems to vibrate with love as he eyes his queen from a respectful distance.
Any man with so much passion in his soul will be inspirational, as well as quixotic, but Mikkelsen straddles the gap without effort and delivers one of the most complex and compelling male performances of the year, ensuring A Royal Affair is a timely and altogether enlightening look at history.