4th Danish Film Festival: Under sandet/Land of Mine, finding humanity in the aftermath of war

The screening of Under sandet/Land of Mine, a film that bravely tackled war issues that were considered taboo for decades was the highlight of the opening night of the 4^th Danish Film Festival held at the Robinson’s Movieworld in Robinson’s Galleria.

Prior to the screening, a cocktail reception hosted by the Embassy of Denmark in the Philippines and Ambassador Jan Top Christensen was held where guests enjoyed the food and drinks, especially the various cheeses by Arla. Among the guests were members of the diplomatic corps, Danish community in Manila, friends of Denmark and several college students. Also present were Atom and Anne Magadia whose film Dagsin/Gravity is among the films to be screened at the festival.

I pretty much tasted almost everything that Arla had to offer that night and that made me forget how difficult travelling along EDSA was for me on that day. And it prepared me to be in good spirits which was needed while watching the opening night film.

Under sandet/Land of Mine

Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89^th Academy Awards, Under sandet/Land of Mine is directed by Martin Pieter Zandvliet and stars Roland Møller, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Louis Hofmann, Joel Basman, Emil Belton, and Oskar Belton.

Early in the film, Sgt. Rasmussen (Roland Møller) singles out a German soldier among those marching dejectedly and lashes out at him violently for clutching a Danish flag. This sets the tone on how the Denmark viewed the Germans, who occupied Denmark for five years, shortly after World War II.

So it’s no surprise that the Danish carried out orders from Great Britain to employ German prisoners of war, some just boys in their teens, to defuse landmines which is in violation of the Geneva Convention. And the film focused on Sgt. Rasmussen and the 14 German boys under his command to work on the mines.

But once the boys introduced themselves to Sgt. Rasumssen, I already had an inkling that in time, he would care for them. And he did soon after he suffers his first casualty. These boys were no longer German prisoners of war to him but actual human beings with their respective stories. This softening of stance causes him to get into trouble with his superior Captain Ebbe (Mikkel Boe Følsgaard) and this forces him to make a crucial decision in the end that leaves his fate and that of the remaining boys unanswered.

The film gave a glimpse of a moment in post-World War II history that is rarely discussed and has been considered taboo for decades. I think that it’s important that the inconvenient gray areas of the history of war be told. The veterans who have served in the war and those who lived during those times have either died already or have grown too old to tell their respective tales.

The screening of Under sandet/Land of Mine was part of the 4^th Danish Film Festival presented by the Embassy of Denmark in the Philippines, the Danish Film Institute, Robinson's Movieworld, and the Film Development Council of the Philippines.