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IMDbPro

Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes

Original title: Kvinden i buret
  • 20132013
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
30K
YOUR RATING
Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
Chief detective Carl Mørck and his assistant Assad become involved in a five-year-old case concerning the mystery of politician Merete Lynggaard's disappearance - a journey that takes them deep into the undercurrent of abuse and malice that lurks beneath the polished surface of Scandinavia.
Play trailer1:40
1 Video
32 Photos
  • Crime
  • Drama
  • Mystery
Police inspector Carl Mørck is put in charge of a department of cold cases, joined only by his assistant Assad. They dig into a case about a missing woman.Police inspector Carl Mørck is put in charge of a department of cold cases, joined only by his assistant Assad. They dig into a case about a missing woman.Police inspector Carl Mørck is put in charge of a department of cold cases, joined only by his assistant Assad. They dig into a case about a missing woman.
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
30K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Mikkel Nørgaard
  • Writers
    • Jussi Adler-Olsen(novel)
    • Nikolaj Arcel
  • Stars
    • Nikolaj Lie Kaas
    • Per Scheel Krüger
    • Troels Lyby
Top credits
  • Director
    • Mikkel Nørgaard
  • Writers
    • Jussi Adler-Olsen(novel)
    • Nikolaj Arcel
  • Stars
    • Nikolaj Lie Kaas
    • Per Scheel Krüger
    • Troels Lyby
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 57User reviews
    • 107Critic reviews
    • 62Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 21 nominations

    Videos1

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 1:40
    Official Trailer

    Photos32

    Fares Fares and Nikolaj Lie Kaas in Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Fares Fares and Nikolaj Lie Kaas in Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Sonja Richter in Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Michael Brostrup and Nikolaj Lie Kaas in Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Fares Fares and Nikolaj Lie Kaas in Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)
    Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes (2013)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Nikolaj Lie Kaas
    Nikolaj Lie Kaas
    • Carl Mørck
    Per Scheel Krüger
    • Anker
    Troels Lyby
    Troels Lyby
    • Hardy Henningsen
    Øyvind B. Fabricius Holm
    • Død mand
    Søren Pilmark
    Søren Pilmark
    • Marcus Jacobsen
    Divya Das
    • Nyhedsvært
    Anne Bærskog Hauger
    • Viggas Rasmussen
    • (voice)
    • (as Anne Hauger)
    Fares Fares
    Fares Fares
    • Assad
    Sonja Richter
    Sonja Richter
    • Merete Lynggaard
    Rasmus Botoft
    Rasmus Botoft
    • Tage Baggesen
    Patricia Schumann
    Patricia Schumann
    • Søs Norup
    Marie Mondrup
    • Helle Andersen
    Mikkel Boe Følsgaard
    Mikkel Boe Følsgaard
    • Uffe Lynggaard
    Kenneth Carmohn
    • Mand på færge
    Patric Lindström
    • Serveur de comptoir
    • (as Patric Neves Lindström)
    Michael Brostrup
    • Børge Bak
    Jeff Pitzner
    • Beboer på Egely
    Lane Lind
    • Forstander på Egely
    • Director
      • Mikkel Nørgaard
    • Writers
      • Jussi Adler-Olsen(novel)
      • Nikolaj Arcel
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Department Q: The Absent One
    7.1
    Department Q: The Absent One
    Department Q: A Conspiracy of Faith
    7.0
    Department Q: A Conspiracy of Faith
    Journal 64
    7.4
    Journal 64
    The Marco Effect
    5.2
    The Marco Effect
    Rejsen
    8.4
    Rejsen
    Dirch
    6.9
    Dirch
    Headhunters
    7.5
    Headhunters
    7.4
    Kvinden i buret: Ulykken
    Flickering Lights
    7.5
    Flickering Lights
    Mørke
    6.7
    Mørke
    Flame & Citron
    7.2
    Flame & Citron
    Collision
    6.4
    Collision

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Fares Fares, who lives in Sweden, had to learn Danish for the role of Assad.
    • Goofs
      The leader of the sanitarium tells the two main characters that Uffe was 8 years old when he had his brain injury in the car accident. But we are also told that Uffe was born on the 10th of may 1982 and that the accident, that gave Uffe his brain injury, happened on the 23rd of December 1988, making Uffe 6 when he got his brain injury.
    • Quotes

      Børge Bak: Do me a favour... if I get murdered... don't investigate my case

      Børge Bak: Fuck You

    • Connections
      Featured in Dansk films bedste: Børneliv og På kant med loven (2022)
    • Soundtracks
      Summer Dresses
      Written by Jay.Soul (as Jeroen van Olffen)

      Performed by DJ Come of Age featuring Cecilia Stalin

    User reviews57

    Review
    Top review
    7/10
    Quality crime drama - but nothing earth-shattering.
    Caught the Danish premiere yesterday with a friend - going in without much in the way of expectations.

    I'm still in the process of reading the book, which I think is a fine crime/thriller/drama - but not much more than that. Not sure what all the fuss is about - but maybe the latter half of the book will make that clear.

    Inevitably, there are significant changes from the source - most notably the protagonist Carl Mørck being significantly younger in the film. But Nikolaj Lie Kaas does a fine job portraying the jaded and highly sarcastic cop despite his age, and he's a reasonable fit for the part.

    Fares Fares plays Assad, the upbeat immigrant counterpart to Mørck - and he's the standout in the film, if you ask me. He's a pitch-perfect match for the character in the book, and he manages to give the part warmth, machismo and endearing humor all in one package. Pretty much exactly as I imagined him - and that includes his physical appearance.

    The character of Merete Lynggaard is played by Sonja Richter - and I'm not sure what to think of her portrayal. It's for certain that she's done a great job with her physical appearance - which changes during the film, to a degree not unlike the well-known extremes like DeNiro in Raging Bull or Christian Bale in The Machinist. Not quite that extreme, but probably the most significant physical change I've seen in Danish acting. That's commendable, of course, but I honestly don't think she's a good fit for Merete as described in the book. It's mentioned several times that she's almost divine and irresistible in her beauty and charm.

    I imagined her as having much more presence than Sonja, I have to say. Overall, I'll give her a pass because of the work she put into her body for the film - but I would have chosen someone else for the part.

    As for the film itself - it obviously skips a lot of detail, but that's to be expected. I did miss some of the interplay between Mørck and his boss (played by Søren Pilmark) and they didn't do justice to his relationship with Hardy, his crippled-by-gunshot best friend (Troels Lyby).

    But beyond those omissions, I found the experience very engaging and quite faithful to the book. The atmosphere is very strong - with great photography and lighting. It has a very suitable Noir feel throughout - and I particularly liked the music, which did a great job of setting the dark tone.

    The locations are strong - and I must admit that the police station and its "Afdeling Q" basement looked more or less just like they did in my mind when reading.

    The buddy cop partnership of Mørck and Assad is spot on - and has a great combination of humor and subtle mutual respect. The banter between these two guys is definitely the high-point of the film.

    I'm not going to spoil anything - so it will suffice to say that the ending is good and extremely tense.

    Essentially, it's a great adaption - and I don't think they could have done much better, given the nature of film and the limited run-time.

    It probably bears repeating that I'm not a major fan of the book (based on the first half) - and as such, I might not be invested enough to notice all the flaws. So, take that into account when reading this review.

    I hope I've been helpful ;)
    helpful•63
    22
    • michael-albertsen
    • Oct 4, 2013

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 17, 2016 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • Denmark
      • Germany
      • Sweden
      • Norway
    • Languages
      • Danish
      • Swedish
      • Arabic
    • Also known as
      • The Keeper of Lost Causes
    • Filming locations
      • Bredeneek, Rastorf, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
    • Production companies
      • Zentropa Entertainments20
      • Film i Väst
      • Zentropa Entertainments
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • €5,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross worldwide
      • $13,656,380
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 36 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • D-Cinema 48kHz 5.1
      • Dolby Atmos
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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