The double story of 1864: The critical reception in a politico-historical context

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Gæsteforelæsning v/ Aarhus Unversitet

The critical reception of Ole Bornedal’s television series 1864 has been relentless and confrontational. This is not, however, uncommon when it comes to historical fiction. But the scale and tone have been out of the ordinary. One important reason is that the TV series is funded by earmarked money directly from a political settlement. The debate was basically promoted by the broadcaster. Nevertheless, Danish film history is not without a precedent. Poul Henningsen’s controversial and disputed documentary Danmark (1935) was funded by the Danish Foreign Ministery and in its critical reception it has several similarities. Henningsen was among the first to promote cultural radicalism, while director Bornedal declares cultural radicalism dead in the light of the critical reception of the series. By way of classic formalistic concepts this paper will analyse the series’ politico-historical and nationalist context.

Period	27 Feb 2015
Held at	Unknown external organisation