Anmeldelse | Review
Vores mand i Amerika
3½ ud af 5 opsætsige diplomater
Henrik Kaufmann var ambassadør i Washington, da Danmark blev besat af Tyskland, og han nægtede at acceptere Staunings samarbejde med nazisterne og gik i stedet egne veje ved at udnævne sig selv til repræsentant for "Det Frie Danmark" og tillade amerikanerne at bygge baser på Grønland. Til gengæld fik han rådighed over halvdelen af sit lands guldreserver, der befandt sig i USA, og kunne således finansiere andre danske ambassader (blandt andet i Argentina og Portugal), der sluttede sig til oprøret. Takket være Kaufmann samt modstandsbevægelsen i hjemlandet blev danskerne, der ellers var udnævnt til overløbere og kujoner af De Allierede, taget til nåde ved fredsslutningen og stiftelsen af FN og NATO. Christina Rosendahls film fortæller denne historie gennem samtaler mellem Kaufmann (Ulrich Thomsen), hans højre hånd Povl Bang-Jensen (Mikkel Boe Følsgaard), præsident Roosevelt (Henry Goodman) og dennes repræsentant, diplomaten Adolf Berle (Burn Gorman) Det meste foregår i eksklusive interiører, og vi får kun indblik i krigens forløb gennem mundtlige referater eller klip fra radioudsendelser. "Tell, don't show" er aldrig en god idé, og selv sort-hvide dokumentarfilmklip havde været en klar forbedring. Til gengæld kommer vi helt ind i Kaufmann og hans kones soveværelse og ser og hører om hans affære med svigerinden, ligesom vi til sidst ser konen (Denise Gough) skære halsen over på sin kræftsyge mand og bagefter begå selvmord på Skodsborg Badehotel i 1963.
Kan i skrivende stund ses på Netflix.
The Good Traitor
3½ out of 5 resurgent diplomats
Henrik Kaufmann was Denmark's ambassador in Washington when Denmark was occupied by Germany, and he refused to accept Stauning's collaboration with the Nazis, opting to appoint himself the representative of "Free Denmark" and allowing the Americans to build bases in Greenland. In return, he got access to half of his country's gold reserves, which were in the USA, and was thus able to finance other Danish embassies (including Argentina and Portugal) that joined the rebellion. Thanks to Kaufmann and the resistance movement in his homeland, the Danes, who were designated as defectors and cowards by the Allies, were forgiven and allowed to join the UN and NATO after the war. Christina Rosendahl's film tells this story through conversations between Kaufmann (Ulrich Thomsen), his right-hand man Povl Bang-Jensen (Mikkel Boe Følsgaard), President Roosevelt (Henry Goodman) and his representative, the diplomat Adolf Berle (Burn Gorman). Most scenes are set in luxurious interiors, and our only insights into the progress of the war are given through oral reports or excerpts from radio broadcasts. "Tell, don't show" is never a good idea, and even black and white documentary clips would have been a definite improvement. We do, however, get exclusive fly-on-the-wall access to Kaufmann and his wife's bedroom and see and hear about his affair with his sister-in-law, just as we finally see the wife (Denise Gough) cut the throat of her cancerous husband and then commit suicide at the Skodsborg Badehotel in 1963.
Can currently be viewed on Netflix.
