"Den du frygter" ("Fear Me Not" in English) reminded me of David Cronenberg's movies. The results of the main character's taking the pills call to mind the risks associated with pharmaceuticals. We hear about side effects, but what happens to this man go beyond that. It would make more sense if the natural substances were more available.It's a very well done movie. This is partly because the viewer thinks that there are degrees to which the movie won't go...but it goes to them. We also get a look at the Danish countryside; its idealistic appearance belies the character's descent into madness. I'm unfamiliar with the rest of Kristian Levring's work but now I'd like to see more of his movies. Denmark has produced some great directors (Carl Theodor Dreyer and Lars von Trier, for instance), and I'd say that Levring is also in that number.

To me this film was tedious and depressing until the trick ending which was like a catharsis for the hour and a half horror movie build up.A middle aged man takes a leave of absence from his job. He is unhappy and in a midlife crisis about the meaning of life.His childhood friend sums it up... "we had big plans but have to accept that this is all there is"He enrolls in an experimental antidepressant trial to help. Real changes begin to take place in his life with these pill but the side effects seem to be increased sex violence and erratic behaviour. There is the atmosphere of a horror movie--something really terrible is going to start happening.Then it is revealed that he was on a placebo (sugar pills) and all the changes in his personality and behavior were just part of him so to speak... you have this great relief.I don't like horror movies and since the first hour and half of this are like one don't recommend it.

This is a disturbing, psychological story that centers upon the private narrative of a man who – like many people – hides repression and aggression behind an overly calm exterior: in short, an example of the passive-aggressive personality type.At once protagonist and antagonist, Mikael (Ulrich Thomsen) is in crisis with himself: he's at the mid-point of his life, he's lost his way at work and on enforced leave, and he sits around at home with this wife and daughter wondering what to do next. He exercises. He reads. He watches TV. He and his wife, Sigrid (Paprika Steen) have their married relatives, Frederick (Lars Brygmann) and Ellen (Stine Stengade), over for dinner often; they all discuss news, listen to music, see movies, talk about life, politics and so on. The two men often row together for exercise and camaraderie. Crucially, Mikael keeps a very private diary on his computer, the content of which is periodically narrated in voice-over throughout the story.We learn that Frederick is a psychologist (perhaps psychiatrist) who is conducting test trials of a new medication designed to counter depression. It's cutting edge stuff; but there are potential, unspecified and serious side-effects. Yet, privately and away from the women, Mikael pleads with Frederick to be part of the trial. Frederick agrees, but issues strict guidelines of use when he hands over a package. Mikael agrees.Weeks pass while Mikael settles into the routine of taking one tablet per day and weekly visits to Frederick's office for blood tests and scans. Subtly and gradually, we see that Mikael's actions begin to take turns for worse, beginning with a random act of violence on a stranger, followed by an improper suggestive proposal to a young woman that just stops short. But, Mikael feels good – for the first time in months, he feels alive...So Mikael ups the ante for himself: he starts taking more than one tablet per day and that's when his repressed desires turn upon his wife, his daughter and Ellen, with suspenseful and unsettling results. But not quite the results that one might expect because there's a twist to this story that makes the end even more unnerving and, for this viewer, more believable.So, this is not a story that's fast-paced. It's no thriller. It is suspenseful, however, as we see how Mikael relates to his family, friends and others and how his personality subtly and overtly changes for the worse. Best of all, we know always what's going on inside his head.I've seen Ulrich Thomsen in Brothers (2004) and The Silence (2010), both excellent and harrowing psychological portrayals of disturbed personalities. With this addition, there's no doubt he is a fine actor who can carry difficult roles well; however, he might risk becoming type-cast. The rest of the cast is more than adequate. But this is Thomsen's movie, being in the frame for nearly every bleak, color de-saturated scene, and with the additional symbolism of the closing scene staying with this viewer long after.I guess you can see this film as an indictment of excessive recourse to drugs for social and psychological ills; on the other hand, maybe it's just a picture of post-post-modernism in which many are struggling to cope with diminishing expectations. I can relate to both. Give it a seven.Recommended, but not for kids.November 21, 2011.

I was disappointed to notice the relatively low collective rating for Kristian Levring's "Fear Me Not." This was one of the best psychological thrillers I've yet to see. Particularly, I think the plot twist was brilliant. I don't want to spoil the film, so I won't go into details about the twist - however, I can say that it definitely pulled me further into the story and it enhanced the film's depth and psychological implications. I also feel the setting was perfect for the protagonist's dark emotional journey. His family's home was on a vast lake within the picturesque Danish landscape. If shot in the summer, the setting would have felt completely different. However, it seems to have been filmed in the fall or early winter, which aptly portrays the cold, dark and somber environment associated with winters in Northwestern Europe. Overall, I believe that anyone who enjoys psychological thrillers would have much to become mesmerized with in this film.