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It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

It's not often that I laud a film revolving around Nazis.With 'Flame and Citron', a Danish film, I've made notable exception. Everything felt good, right from the steel gray sky on down: the script, props, costumes, even the major 'watering' holes. The plot moved forward almost as fast as that sordid period lasted in Denmark. The actors especially those who portrayed the two main characters were plausible. Even the Nazi occupiers gave good support though as fierce opposition; better make that as brutal suppressors of the Danish 'resistance'.One prominent Nazi, Herr Hoffman, even as the Copenhagen SS chief at times appeared almost, well, human. Maybe that wasn't the director's intent. However, from where I sat, that was the impression Hoffman gave.On the other hand, the wiry rimmed Gestapo chief's many speeches/soliloquies added little to the plot's progression. Often Hoffman's own words revealed his dark nature. That was expected given who is employers were, no?Not well versed in Danish history, especially concerning that turbulent WW II period, my instincts scream that this film 'told the truth'. And as macabre as many scenes were, my sympathies still lay with the Danes. My guess is the period's experts would share my opinion.Even against daunting odds, brave little Denmark put up a dogged, albeit costly fight. The Big Nazi War Machine though won, (I think); that's no surprise. No doubt that the two main protagonists, Flame and Citron, as the Resistance's crack enforcers played a most pivotal even momentum changing role.And the film's producers/director gave much credence to that perspective, right to the sad end. My wish is that more films of this genre were produced in the same excellent 9mm caliber.Alas, in that same regard, there's a conspicuous absence of these true 'gems' in the cinema trade. Moreover, Hollywood studios could learn much from the Danish film industry.And you can take that to the Krone bank.

British film buffs are often critical of Americans for their supposed indifference to foreign-language moves, but there are signs that the transatlantic phobia about subtitles has now spread to our own shores. Films from continental Europe were once fairly common on British television, but they have now all but disappeared from terrestrial channels, and even on specialist movie channels like Sky Movies, TCM and Film 4 they are few and far between. BBC4 is something of an exception. Following "The Killing" and "Borgen" that channel is currently having a love-affair with all things Danish, and it was there that I recently caught "Flame & Citron". It is said to be one of the most expensive Danish language movies ever, although the budget was only around six million pounds, peanuts by Hollywood standards. (Most Hollywood producers these days would pay out considerably more than that figure to meet the salary demands of just one of their film's stars). It is loosely based on actual events and deals with the Danish resistance movement during the latter part of World War II. The title refers to the code names of two members of the Holger Danske resistance group, Bent Faurschou-Hviid (known as Flame because of his red hair) and Jørgen Haagen Schmith (known as Citron, Danish for lemon, because he once worked for the Citroen car company). The film opens in 1943 when the tide of war is starting to turn against Germany, Hitherto the Resistance has largely confined itself to sabotage and assassinations of Danish collaborators. Flame and Citron now receive instructions from their controller, Aksel Winther, to pursue a campaign of attacks against the Nazi occupiers themselves, something the Resistance has previously avoided. Films about European Resistance movements made during the war or in the years immediately following it invariably had a simple moral structure. (I cannot recall any such movies actually set in Denmark, but there were numerous examples about other occupied countries, such as "The Day Will Dawn" and "The Heroes of Telemark", both about Norway, "One of Our Aircraft is Missing" about the Netherlands and "The Guns of Navarone" about Greece). The Resistance fighters are invariably shown as unambiguously heroic, as are their British or American allies, the Germans are unambiguously evil, and the local collaborators totally despicable. The film generally ends with our heroes having successfully performed some gallant feat of arms which will render invaluable assistance to the Allied war effort. "Flame and Citron" is quite different. Despite its World War Two setting, it bears more resemblance to a modern spy movie or to a neo- noir crime drama than a traditional "heroic Resistance" film. One might call it, on the analogy of the revisionist Western, a revisionist Resistance drama. There are no British or American commandos on hand to lend assistance. The attacks which Bent and Jørgen carry out are only of doubtful value to the overall Allied cause. Most importantly, the moral boundaries are more blurred. Flame and Citron suffer pangs of conscience over the killings they carry out and never know whom they can trust. Is Winther in league with the Germans, or is he in fact pursuing his own personal agenda by settling private scores? Is Ketty, the glamorous woman with whom Flame falls in love, actually a double agent? Will the attacks on the Germans contribute to the liberation of Denmark, or will they simply provoke German reprisals against Danish civilians? Are the Germans in fact all villains? One high-ranking German officer claims to be part of his country's own anti-Nazi movement, and even if he is lying this claim does at least draw attention to the fact that by no means all Germans were pro-Hitler. The atmosphere of the film is, despite occasional action sequences, subdued, with a muted colour scheme, symbolic of the dark shadows which Nazi rule had cast over occupied Europe. Although it does, I think, finally reach the conclusion that the Resistance effort was worthwhile in that the self-sacrifice involved played a vital role in enabling Denmark to preserve its sense of national honour, it does at least dramatise some of the moral dilemmas involved in active resistance to a brutal occupying force. Modern dramas from continental Europe about the war are not particularly common, but this is one well worth watching. 7/10

The first thing I noticed when watching Flame and Citron was the directing, more precisely the camera angels, and acting. The main character, Flame (played by Thure Lindhardt), looked awesome in almost every shot and his partner Citron (Mads Mikkelsen) did an amazing job acting as well. This movie has a lot of good life lessons, and moral warnings.I liked the fact that it was based on true events. This makes it possible to look at the movie from a more realistic point of view. Flame and Citron encourages one to question life and reason in general from a realistic view rather than question the movie it's self. This all in accordance with war time events of course, and resistance fighters.I looked into the history behind the movie and it's neat to know that they have statues built in Denmark to commemorate these brave underground soldiers.

Uncompromising filmmaking that puts to shame big budget American-made World War Two movies, FLAME AND CITRON delves into the sometimes unglamorous side of wartime intrigue by focusing on two heretofore unsung heroes. Their tactics are understandably brutal: "Hate seduces you into doing things you never thought yourself capable of." Personal relationships become suspect. "We have to move on," Citron is told just after learning of his wife's infidelity; and it's all part of the TRUE cost of waging war. The best line in the movie is one of the most telling: "I don't think there is an 'after.'" Outstanding filmmaking deserving of a look.