THE QUIET ONES
Starring: Gustav Giese, Reda Kateb, Amanda Collin, Christopher Wagelin, Jens Hultén, Granit Rushiti, and Amin Ahmed
Director: Frederik Louis Hviid
NICK
The Quiet Ones, based on the largest robbery in Denmark's history, handles the heist elements with the level of high-octane, immersiveness that you'd hope. It has a realism similar to last year's How to Blow Up a Pipeline. Unlike that film, however, director Frederik Louis Hviid fails to get you invested in either the characters or the planning process, which makes for an opening hour without much tension. It also doesn't help matters that the motivations for the heist itself are murky at best. Unfortunately, one scene does not make a film, but it IS enough to bump up the rating a bit.
BODE
During the 2008 financial crisis, a number of men pulled off the biggest heist in Danish history. Frederik Louis Hviid’s solo directorial effort, The Quiet Ones, chronicles how they did it and what happened with a precision (one of the real-life robbers served as a consultant) and intensity that makes it clear that the style of Michael Mann is of great influence. In fact, his influence is so noticeable that The Quiet Ones unfortunately lacks a distinct personality all its own, especially in regards to its characters. Still, it’s gripping enough that it should please most heist film fans.
QUENTIN
It's heist time, baby! Unfortunately, The Quiet Ones barely gets a middle-of-the-road rating, which probably can be mostly attributed to my biased love for the genre. Falling more in line with gritty bank robbery movies like The Town than glossy capers like Ocean’s Eleven, this Danish film about the biggest heist in Danish history fumbles everything outside of the actual robbery. The characters and motives aren’t fully developed, so there just isn’t much to connect with (I admit that subtitles could be a factor here, too). That said, the robbery sequence is decently action-y and intense, but in a hollow video game kind of way.
This film was reviewed by Nick as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival.