Few films have been able to realistically capture young people as they really are.."400 Blows" is one of them. another such film is this little known gem of a movie called "Maske ku' vi," from Denmark. Basically a portrait of a very brief time in life when we are not yet adults, but not really kids either. It's about 15 year old Kim, living with his mother who is struggling without a man in the house to help out. She's frustrated with her son's "laziness," somehow expecting a 15 year old boy to want to do more than hang out with his friends and drink and pursue the opposite sex. And like a lot of kids his age, Kim hates school and anything that restricts his freedom. The audiences of today might be disturbed at the sight of 15 year olds drinking like sailors and sharing cigarettes with their parents, but this is specifically a product of the 70's, and very much a Danish film, and these days this kind of behavior is so alien that it takes on a kind of surreal quality. The first portion of the movie introduces the viewer to Kim as we get to know what he's about. The scenes of him and his friend Ole are so realistic and intimate that we feel like we know them personally. Things take a darker turn when he is kidnapped by bank robbers who take him and a girl his age, hostage. But the robbers aren't a particular mean bunch, and this seems to be a mere plot device to move the story along. The remainder of the film deals with Kim and the girl as they get closer and become a couple on the run. That's really it, as the linear story isn't the important thing about this one. The point of this movie is to evoke a certain nostalgic feeling in the viewer, and for anyone who has been a rebellious teenager, this will have a very important and powerful meaning. This beautifully filmed coming of age movie is somewhat rare, but it is worth tracking down.
