The Green Butchers
The Green Butchers
| 11 November 2003 (USA)
The Green Butchers Trailers

A black comedy featuring two butchers, Svend "Sweat" and Bjarne, who start their own shop to get away from their arrogant boss. Cannibalism is soon introduced to the plot, and further complications arise due to the reappearance of Bjarne's intellectually disabled twin brother Eigil.

Reviews
mgk

This movie is a masterpiece! Nothing less! I'm so proud that we in little Denmark were able to produce such a great movie.It is truly hilarious especially if you like a little dark humor. But don't get me wrong, it is not vulgar but it's funny because it's so absurd. The characters are well written and played exceptionally great by especially Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Mads Mikkelsen. They are funny, dark and with a lot of depth. The plot is also great. If you haven't seen this movie yet - see it! EVERYONE should do them self the favor of seeing this movie at least once! If you've already seen it and are looking for more like this I can recommend "Flickering Lights", "Adam's Apples", "In China They Eat Dogs" and "Old Men in New Cars". They are all written by Anders Thomas Jensen (who wrote and directed this movie). They are the exact same kind of movies with great, dark humor.

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luis_neiva

De Gronne Slagtere is perhaps one of the darkest comedies I ever watched. In fact, it's so dark I even hesitate before calling it a comedy.Two socially awkward friends who work in a butcher's shop are tired of being constantly mistreated by their boss and they decide to open their own shop. Their anti-social behavior doesn't help them and the business doesn't go well until one unfortunate accident changes everything - suddenly, their butcher's shop becomes a success and it improves drastically their own personal lives.What impressed me the most about this film is the huge amount of things that could have gone wrong. It could have been so terribly bad and yet, it's brilliant! The whole premise is very original but dangerous. There were two ways this could easily have gone – or it could be absolutely ridiculous or overly dramatic. However, Jensen manages to create an incredibly realistic way to tell the story and surprisingly, it works.Of course that wouldn't have happened without the two main actors, Mads Mikkelsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas. They both have very difficult characters – especially Mikkelsen – that any average actor could have ruined by overacting. But these two are not any average actor and they deliver two astonishing performances that bring to life all the realism Jensen was looking for.Having solved that, a strong script, great soundtrack and very interesting cinematography do the rest and the result is an atmosphere so heavy that you can barely breathe.De Gronne Slagtere it's not a film for everyone, that's guaranteed! It's dark, twisted and its humor can be hard to swallow sometimes. Nevertheless, it's a must-watch for every person who likes to feed their dark side once in a while.

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MartinHafer

One of the recent American television cult favorites has been Hannibal. Mads Mikkelsen has brought a new look and style to the show as the title character—and he and the TV series are a bit different in style and tone than the films. This isn't at all a bad thing…and Influx has been following the show for some time. While I am NOT a die-hard fan of the show, my daughters are and insist on watching it and wonder why I am not equally excited about the show. As for me, I like Mikkelsen—but I prefer him in films. He's done quite a few brilliant and highly inventive Danish films, such as After the Wedding, A Royal Affair and The Hunt (all of which were nominated for Oscars for Best Foreign Language film). However, I finally found something unusual—a movie with Mikkelsen that is sort of like a warm-up for his later role as Hannibal Lecter. And, it seems like a natural for fans of the TV series to watch.The Green Butchers is a very, very strange film that I did enjoy. It's about two rather asocial guys who work at a local butcher shop. They hate their boss and decide to go into business for themselves. Svend (Mikkelsen) is the 'front man'—the guy who usually greets customers and sells them their meat. In contrast, Bjarne (Nikolaj Lie Kaas), prefers to work in the back—butchering the meat and avoiding people as much as possible. Bjarne is a complicated and sad man—late in the film you learn why he is so withdrawn. Svend, on the other hand, just wants to be a success and for people to like him. In the meantime, however, their business appears to be failing—and their grand opening is a catastrophe. An unexpected death turns out to be just what the boys needed! When their electrician accidentally freezes himself to death in their walk-in freezer, Svend panics and tries to hide the evidence. He is worried this accidental death would be bad for business and decides to get rid of the body in an unconventional way—he butchers him, marinates the meat and sells it to customers. And, the meat is a HUGE hit—such a bit hit that all evidence of the accidental death is soon consumed. But, with the prospect of losing all these new customers, Svend makes the practical, yet nasty decision to procure another body….and so on and so on.The strangest part about this film is that it's really NOT a comedy. I had just assumed it was a dark comedy like Eating Raoul but instead found that it was a drama….and a very light drama at that. While you'd think that the film would be disgusting and bloody, it actually isn't and the two murderers (especially Bjarne) are rather likable anti- heroes. In fact this is the most amazing thing about the film—it's about cannibalism but is neither a comedy nor a horror film. On top of that, the ending is very, very strange…and a bit funny in a very off- beat sort of way. Not a brilliant film but very inventive and strangely likable. Plus, if you cannot get enough of Mads Mikkelsen as Hannibal, perhaps this will help feed your need for more.

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dumsumdumfai

of Adam's apple and With Your Permission. I didn't know until looking it up just now. Also the errrrrrmmmmm 'Wilbur Wants to Kill himself' I prefer this very focused deadpan ...drama over Adam's Apple's over the top comedic zeal. But With Your Permission is much more layered and subtle, but that's another director.Once the 'meaty' part of the story takes place I felt the dread of coming back to the shop again and again. A bit claustrophobic .. maybe that is intentional. It builds on the atmosphere. You dread the rediscovery and again and again until the 'kick in the shin'.this is some funny stuff.

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