World-premiering earlier this year at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, Magnus von Horn’s gothic thriller The Girl With the Needle follows a wet nurse working for an underground adoption agency in post-WWI Copenhagen. It was recently selected as the official Danish entry for Best International Feature at the 97th Academy Awards,
The black-and-white film had its North American premiere at the 49th Toronto International Film Festival and was also screened at the 12th Beyond Fest. The film recently won multiple awards at the European Film Academy’s Excellence Awards, taking home the awards for Production Design and Original Score.
The Girl With the Needle stars Vic Carmen Sonne, Trine Dyrholm, Besir Zeciri, Joachim Fjelstrup, Tessa Hoder, Avo Knox Martin, Anders Hove, Ari Alexander.
Release Date
Directed by Magnus von Horn, The Girl With the Needle opens in select US theaters on December 6, 2024.
Synopsis
Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne), a young factory worker, is struggling to survive in post-WW1 Copenhagen. When she finds herself unemployed, abandoned and pregnant, she meets Dagmar (Trine Dyrholm), a charismatic woman running an underground adoption agency, helping mothers to find foster homes for their unwanted children. With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet nurse. A strong connection is formed between the two women, but Karoline’s world shatters when she stumbles upon the shocking truth behind her work. Inspired by a true story and directed by Magnus von Horn (The Here After, Sweat) The Girl With the Needle is an unsettling tale about a woman struggling to find love and a sense of morality.
Reviews
Guy Lodge in a Variety review praised the film, describing it as, “Extraordinary and upsetting… an adult fairytale abundantly populated with witches and wretches, but where society is revealed as the true monster.”
Savina Petkova in a The Film Stage review gave the film a B+, writing, “The Girl with The Needle dives headfirst into a swamp of terror, a bubbling concoction of maternal phobias and early-20th-century dread––so much that you can taste every ounce of pain as if it was your own.”
Official Trailer
Watch the official trailer for The Girl With the Needle.