To the mentally ill Kriss, the world is divided up into 'good and evil', just like in the old B&W melodrama, 'Pure Hearts', which Kriss and his fellow patient, Willy, spend their days repeatedly watching at the psychiatric ward. To Kriss this film is the bible. One day after a serious conflict with one of the hospital's other patients their viewing rights are retracted. Kriss is deeply frustrated by this, until he realises that Linda, the young girl in the film, actually exists in the shape of the film's star, the actress Ulla Vilstrup. Setting fire to the hospital, Kriss and Willy escape into the night, determined to find her, because life is what you make of it.
Acting
Matthesen's fragile conviction makes delusion heartbreaking.
Direction
Kainz blurs B&W fantasy into grimy color seamlessly.
Writing
Meta-narrative that bites its own philosophical tail.
Director
Kenneth Kainz
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The fictional 'Pure Hearts' film-within-a-film was created specifically for this movie, shot to mimic 1940s Danish melodrama style.
Anders Matthesen, primarily known as Denmark's biggest stand-up comedian, deliberately chose this role to shatter his public persona—much like Kriss shatters his own reality.
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