World premiere

Hercules Falling

Local title
Heraklese langemine
Original title
Herkules Falder
Director
Christian Bonke
Country
Denmark
Year
2025
Festival
29th Black Nights Film Festival
Programme
First Feature Competition
Genre
Drama
Subject
familial relationships, mental health

Danish superstar Dar Salim is back in a striking role as a psychologically wounded warrior.

Every war ends sooner or later, but it leaves scars on the hearts and minds of those who survive it. For Youssef, Afghanistan and Iraq linger. After an almost fatal incident at home, he enrols in a special facility to prepare for another battle: this time, to learn to control his anger. It's not going to be easy.

Director Christian Bonke combines documentary and fiction as he takes us to the island of Strynø. There, Anne-Line Ussing and her husband, Stuart Press – who was diagnosed with PTSD 10 years after serving in the Australian Army – run a voluntary retreat centre for Danish soldiers such as Youssef. In the company of war veterans, generous hosts and their children, Dar Salim, who won the Best Actor award for “Until We Fall” at PÖFF 2018, delivers a performance of brutal honesty and frank authenticity in this gripping drama, which is both painstakingly researched and extensively timely. The film explores the possibility of rebuilding the life a former soldier deserves. Vulnerable Youssef attends vital group exercises to process an enormous amount of grief and learns to accept the person he has become.

The scariest reality of this heartbreaking film is that, after ongoing wars (Ukraine is mentioned), thousands of traumatised soldiers like Youssef, Felix, Knudsen and Thomas will return home. There will be tears.

Edvinas Pukšta

Director
Christian Bonke
Screenwriter
Christian Holten Bonke, Marianne Lentz
Cast
Dar Salim, Christine Gjerulff, Thomas Abrigo
Producer
Amalie Lyngbo Quist, Sebastian Weyland
Cinematographer
Niels Thastum
Production Design
Tilde Platz
Editing
Denniz Göl Bertelsen
Music
Kaiser Maas
Sound
Rasmus Winther
Production
Beo Starling
Runtime
Language
Danish
Subtitles
Estonian, English
Director
Christian Bonke

Award for the best film, grant of 5000€ by

Trailer