Overview
A gripping tale of resilience and betrayal unfolds in post-war Copenhagen.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- bleak
- disturbing
- oppressive
- serious film night
- arthouse cinema night
What critics said
Critics broadly praise the gripping performances, striking black-and-white craft, and bold atmosphere while finding the narrative less fully developed than its technical achievement.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film frames postwar deprivation and criminality through poetic, nightmarish visual and tonal language.
Karoline's poverty and pregnancy lead her into Dagmar's underground adoption network, where desperate mothers and children are endangered.
Copenhagen's 1919 unemployment, poverty, and social dislocation shape Karoline's choices and Dagmar's criminal enterprise.
The film's black-and-white imagery, shadows, and meticulously reconstructed postwar environments produce an expressionist atmosphere.
Films like The Girl with the Needle, and why
Son of Saul
shared bleak historical setting, moral horror, and uncompromising social drama
The Lighthouse
shared expressionist black-and-white imagery, oppressive atmosphere, and psychologically disturbing historical subject matter
The Nightingale
shared fact-based crime narrative, period hardship, and grim examination of social marginalization
Pan's Labyrinth
shared dark fairy-tale tone, social devastation, and stylized historical drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Magnus von Horn
- Release Date
- 2024-09-06
- Runtime
- 123 min
- Rating
- 7.6 / 10 (399)
Cast
- Vic Carmen Sonne
- Trine Dyrholm
- Besir Zeciri
- Joachim Fjelstrup
- Tessa Hoder
- Ava Knox Martin
- Ari Alexander
- Søren Sætter-Lassen
- Magnus von Horn
- Anna Terpiłowska
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Girl with the Needle about?
- In devastated 1919 Copenhagen, a pregnant unemployed worker is drawn into an adoption network whose charitable façade conceals a nightmare of exploitation and murder.
- What is The Girl with the Needle like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Girl with the Needle as measured, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Girl with the Needle violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The Girl with the Needle as graphic.
- What did critics think of The Girl with the Needle?
- Critics broadly praise the gripping performances, striking black-and-white craft, and bold atmosphere while finding the narrative less fully developed than its technical achievement.
- Which films are like The Girl with the Needle?
- Films with a similar feel include Son of Saul, The Lighthouse, The Nightingale, and Pan's Labyrinth.
- How long is The Girl with the Needle?
- The Girl with the Needle runs 123 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Girl with the Needle?
- In United States, The Girl with the Needle streams on MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel.
