The Danish Girl (***1/2)

"The Danish Girl" is two parts "A Beautiful Mind" and one part "The Theory of Everything." Good news for the filmmakers, as both films went on to reap buckets of awards in their respective year. Bad for the typical movie-goer, who will watch this film feeling a sense of deja vu, disappointed that the story is in many ways a retreading of the classic "Oscar biopic" which follows the following the following plotline:


1. Introduce the main character and their lover/partner. Establish they have a healthy relationship
2. Reveal the main character's ailment that will challenge their romance
3. Watch as the characters learn to adapt to said ailment and work through difficult emotional turmoil
4. With love and support, the main character goes on to achieve the impossible (complete with a rousing musical accompaniment)


I'm being too hard on the film, aren't I? Afterall, the director Tom Hooper has won an Oscar for dealing with an historical story in "The King's Speech." He must know how to make a good movie, right? (Oh, we can add "The King's Speech" to that list, too).

Overall, yes. The story, a beautiful and heartbreaking story of a husband and wife (Gerda and Einar), painters, and the discovery that Einar feels as though a woman trapped in a man's body. He feels a tickling sensation when he brushes against lace. His wife plays along and suggests he goes by the name Lili. They go to a party and test a disguise. It's all fun and games until it's not - when Lili feels compelled to fulfill a deep need to transition to a female through and through.

The story is fascinating in the way it shows the dual personalities of husband and wife. Eddie Redmayne (last year's Oscar winner as Stephen Hawking) is simply transformative playing a man who is coming to terms with a new life. He's shy, fearful, and deeply curious - fascinated by a newfound male gaze and the process of daily makeup. His wife, Gerda (Alicia Vikander) is a strong-willed woman who is simultaneously broken-hearted at losing her husband and yet compelled to work on becoming a better professional on her own. It's one of the better female performances of the year - all the better for being a standout in a script that could have given her a few more liberties. At the end of the film, isn't she still a bit too dependent on a man's guidance?

The score is absolutely brilliant (again, last year's Oscar winner Alexandre Desplat), the photography memorable, the costumes unique and the sets convincing. On the basis of an Oscar-contender, we have a sure-fire winner. As I felt with last year's "Theory of Everything," and even more so here, it feels too much like a Hollywood romance presented with no loose ends and pretty bow on top. It's too bad the story took such a drastic departure from the truth, and yet with all the ups and downs, perhaps the movie would have never been made otherwise.