''April 9th'' () is a 2015 Danish war film directed by Roni Ezra, and starring

Pilou Asbæk Johan Philip "Pilou" Asbæk (; born 2 March 1982) is a Danish actor, best known for his role as troubled spin doctor Kasper Juul in the Danish television political drama '' Borgen'', and as Euron Greyjoy in the television series ''Game of Thron ...

and

Lars Mikkelsen Lars Dittmann Mikkelsen (; born 6 May 1964) is a Danish actor. He is known for his roles as Copenhagen mayoral election candidate Troels Hartmann in the Danish police procedural '' The Killing'', the character Charles Augustus Magnussen in the t ...

. The film depicts the

German invasion of Denmark German invasion of Denmark may refer to: *German invasion during the First Schleswig War (1848–1852) *German invasion during the Second Schleswig War (1864) *German invasion of Denmark (1940) The German invasion of Denmark (), was the German ...

which commenced on 9 April 1940 and follows a Danish

bicycle infantry Bicycle infantry are infantry soldiers who maneuver on (or, more often, between) battlefields using military bicycles. The term dates from the late 19th century, when the "safety bicycle" became popular in Europe, the United States, and Austra ...

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

sent as a

vanguard The vanguard (sometimes abbreviated to van and also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. ...

to slow down the German advance until reinforcements can arrive. The film's budget was 22 million

Danish krone The krone (; plural: ''kroner''; sign: kr.; code: DKK) is the official currency of Denmark, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands, introduced on 1 January 1875. Both the ISO code "DKK" and currency sign "kr." are in common use; the former precedes ...

(just over $3 million) and was supported by the

Danish Film Institute The Danish Film Institute (; DFI) is the national Danish institution, agency responsible for supporting and encouraging film and cinema culture, and for conserving these in the national interest. It is the successor organisation to the Danish Fil ...

, TV 2, and the

Haderslev Municipality Haderslev Municipality (, ) is a town and municipality on the east coast of the Jutland peninsula in the Region of Southern Denmark. It includes the island of Årø as well as several other smaller islands in the Little Belt. The municipality cov ...

. The film was released in Danish cinemas on 12 March 2015.

Plot

During the night of 9 April 1940, the Danish army is alerted that the German army has crossed the border, and Denmark is now at war with Europe's strongest army. In South Jutland, a Danish bicycle infantry company and motorcycle platoon is ordered to hold off the German advance until reinforcements can arrive but are quickly overwhelmed by superior German forces. During the morning Second Lieutenant Sand (

) and his platoon of soldiers battle the Germans and then retreat to

Haderslev Haderslev (; ) is a Denmark, Danish town in the Region of Southern Denmark with a population of 22,405 (1 January 2025).Lars Mikkelsen Lars Dittmann Mikkelsen (; born 6 May 1964) is a Danish actor. He is known for his roles as Copenhagen mayoral election candidate Troels Hartmann in the Danish police procedural '' The Killing'', the character Charles Augustus Magnussen in the t ...

– Lieutenant-Colonel Hintz *

– Second Lieutenant Sand * Gustav Dyekjær Giese –

Private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

Andersen * Sebastian Bull Sarning – Private Lundgren * Joachim Fjelstrup –

Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

Bundgaard * Martin Greis –

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

Gjermansen * Michael Brostrup –

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Hartz *

Elliott Crosset Hove Elliott Crosset Hove (born 18 March 1988) is a Danish–American actor mostly known for his work with Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason Hlynur Pálmason (born 1984) is an Icelandic film director, screenwriter, and visual artist. Early lif ...

– Private Jens-Otto Lassen * Jannik Lorenzen – Private Gram * Morten Hauch-Fausbøll –

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

Fladsaa * Mikkel Trøst Bentzen – Private Nørreskov * Ari Alexander – Private Justesen * Mathias Lundkvist – Private Kolding * Jesper Hagelskær Paasch – Major Jepsen * Jan Jürgensen – Sergent Klostergaard *

Simon Sears Simon Sears (born 25 January 1984) is a Danish actor. Early life and education Sears was born in Roskilde to an Italian father and Danish mother. He was raised in the town of Solrød Strand, and has two older siblings. When he was younger, Sear ...

–

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Holm * Jesper Hagelskær Paasch – Lieutenant Jepsen * Pelle Emil Hebsgaard – Runner * Jan Dose –

Oberleutnant (English: First Lieutenant) is a senior lieutenant Officer (armed forces), officer rank in the German (language), German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. In Austria, ''Oberle ...

Becker

Production

The film was directed by Roni Ezra, and the screenplay was by Tobias Lindholm (who also wrote ''

A Hijacking ''A Hijacking'' () is a 2012 Danish thriller film written and directed by Tobias Lindholm about a ship hijacking. Pilou Asbæk and Søren Malling star as a cook taken hostage and the CEO that attempts to negotiate for his release, respectiv ...

'', '' Borgen'', and '' The Hunt''). The outline story was based on eyewitness accounts, conversations, and interviews with the few surviving veterans of 9 April 1940, who fought the invading German Army. The ''Mellem Slesvigs Grænser'' museum in Bylderup-Bov was approached by

Nordisk Film Nordisk Film A/S () is a Danish entertainment company involved in film production and distribution and a subsidiary of Egmont Group. The multimedia entertainment company is also involved in television production, cinemas, computer games and ...

in the autumn of 2013 with regards to assisting with uniforms and weapons. In March 2014, the film company collected 120 Danish steel helmets, 100 gas-mask canisters, 50 pairs of wool pants, 24 dummy-rifles, 32 cartridge belts, and a khaki officer coat. Moreover, the museum loaned two old Nimbus motorcycles with side-cars. All equipment was initially transported to Budapest, Hungary, where part of the movie was shot. The film was also shot in Haderslev, where the streets around Møllepladsen, Sønderbro, and Convent Cemetery were sealed off from 17 to 19 June 2014. Other shooting took place at Jacob Michelsen's Farm in Aabenraa and in Søgårdlejren.

Reception

The film received mixed, but generally favorable reviews from Danish critics, with

Berlingske ''Berlingske'', previously known as ''Berlingske Tidende'' (, 'Berling's Times'), is a Danish national daily newspaper based in Copenhagen. It is considered a newspaper of record for Denmark. First published on 3 January 1749, ''Berlingske'' is ...

and Ekko giving it 5 out of 6 stars, while others gave it between 2 and 5 out of 6.

References

External links

* * {{Tobias Lindholm 2015 films 2015 war drama films Danish war drama films 2010s Danish-language films Danish World War II films World War II films based on actual events Films set in 1940 Films shot in Denmark Films with screenplays by Tobias Lindholm 2015 drama films