The only movie Mads Mikkelsen watches at least once a year: “It remains as charming as ever”
If a movie or a TV show is ever in need of a villain, then there’s a special button they can press that automatically casts Mads Mikkelsen for the role. The Danish sensation has played the bad guy in some seriously big franchises, from Indiana Jones to James Bond, the Marvel Cinematic Universe to the TV show Hannibal. There’s just something about him that casts a very sinister shadow, even though he seems like a thoroughly nice guy behind the scenes.
It’s not been all doom and gloom for the ‘Dane’, however. While Hollywood loves to typecast him, he has had a more varied career in his native country, particularly through his relationship with revolutionary director Thomas Vinterberg. For those who only know him as ‘that guy with the scary face’, it’s well worth checking out such Danish language flicks as Another Round, After the Wedding, and the gritty, drug-laced Pusher trilogy.
Unfortunately, when Mikkelsen sat down with The Academy to discuss his five favourite films, he did little to alleviate his dark aura. Four of his five choices were incredibly bleak: Martin Scorsese’s ode to masculine rage, Taxi Driver; Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam War epic Apocalypse Now; the Soviet anti-war epic Come and See; and Dekalog, a Polish religious allegory that’s technically a miniseries (naughty boy). Thankfully, his final choice was on hand to bring a little light to proceedings.
“Singin’ in the Rain is one of my favourite films,” he admitted. “Everybody in it is so charming, and the film is so good. The way they sing and dance is astonishing, and, eventually, you find out that Gene Kelly was a perfectionist. He was so ambitious, but it comes across onscreen like they’re all playing a game! I just love it. It makes me smile every time I see it, and I do watch it again once a year, every year. It remains just as charming as ever.”
Released in 1952, Singin’ in the Rain is widely regarded as not only one of the best movie musicals of all time but one of the best movies full stop. Co-directed and starring Gene Kelly, the film chronicles the transition between the silent film era and the advent of the ‘talkies’ through the eyes of three performers, Kelly, Donald O’Connor, and Debbie Reynolds. The sequence in which Kelly performs the title number with a 103°F fever, no less, is amongst the most incredible ever committed to film and is an oft-invoked popular reference.
It’s interesting that Mikkelsen chose to highlight Kelly’s perfectionism, as that cast quite a shadow behind the scenes. The legendary song and dance man could be extremely cruel in his pursuit of greatness, regularly taking his anger out on the co-stars he didn’t feel were up to scratch. This behaviour is an example of the unchecked power many stars had during this era, which could often lead to highly unpleasant working environments on major pictures. Trust Mads Mikkelsen to find something dark in a conversation about Singin’ in the Rain!
The truth might not be as jolly as what appears onscreen, but Singin’ in the Rain still holds up as one of the pillars of American cinema. If Mads Mikkelsen can find a place for it in his heart, then so can you.
