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★★★
Directed by: Jesper Isaksen
Written by: Jesper Isaksen
Starring: Rudi Kohnke, Siff Andersson, Louise Cho
A dark journey into the mind of a deeply disturbed individual.
Charly (Kohnke), has left the U.S. and returned to Copenhagen in order to search for his American girlfriend Amy (Cho), who went missing. He stays at the Majestic Hotel, where she was last seen, and begins his investigation. He soon meets a young woman named Felicija (Andersson), with whom he develops a romantic relationship. Things take a turn for the worse as Charly begins having terrifying visions that involve a sinister-looking figure dressed in black and wearing a frightening mask.
This intense psychological mystery horror film could be viewed as a combination between Angel Heart and Jacob's Ladder. The majority of the story takes place inside the hotel and follows Charly around as he attempts to find out the truth about Amy and struggles with his inner troubles, while at the same time is plagued by nightmares and tries to maintain his sanity. There is hard drug use, alcoholism, nudity, aggressive intercourse, brutal beatings and savage murders.
Protagonist Kohnke is very convincing as a broken man, with several tattoos of crucifixes, who is also an alcoholic and drug addict. Although he means well, he is dangerous and becomes more and more unpredictable as he delves deeper into the mystery regarding Amy. Andersson is believable as a rebellious woman, who enters Charly's life and opens the door to a new path for him.
Concerning the audio, most of the dialogue is spoken in Danish and there are rather sinister and disturbing sound effects. The score creates a feeling of dread, which goes very well with the atmosphere.
The interesting cinematography and lighting provide a downbeat mood.
It would be fair to say that during the first half the pace is slow. Later things pick up, as the narrative gets bloody and violent.
Victim of Love is not very thrilling and takes a while to grab the viewer's attention. Nevertheless, it is a well-made horror film, with a menacing atmosphere and benefits considerably by Kohnke's performance.
Trailer:
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