De største helte

Thomas Vinterberg himself describes his film as a road movie, but if by the road movie genre you mean that the characters' psychology changes along the way, then The Greatest Heroes is no road movie. It will probably survive that, for it is a lovely film Vinterberg has made. The road movie genre has simply become so popular that as soon as someone gets into a car, the film is immediately proclaimed a road movie.

The Greatest Heroes is instead a tragic but humorous drama about the bank robber Karsten, who fails to return to prison after a couple of days' leave in order to take his newfound daughter Louise with him to Sweden. Louise is 12 when her mother decides she should be allowed to get to know her biological father. Karsten and his friend Peter take Louise to the Tivoli, and when they find out that Louise is unhappy at home because of her overprotective stepfather Allan, they hatch a wild plan. Together the trio will drive to Sweden, where Karsten and Peter have a couple of sweet girlfriends. Karsten's paternal feelings have, in other words, been well and truly awakened.

The trip becomes a mixture of holiday and escape. Karsten and Louise get close to each other, but the cosiness is disturbed when the psychopathic Allan pursues them to bring Louise home. At the same time, the police begin to get wind of them.

Telling stories about outsiders is in fashion in Danish cinema. Vinterberg's film is very probably one of the best. Thomas Bo Larsen is on top form as the down-and-out Karsten, who pulls himself together and becomes one of the greatest heroes.