THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE Trailer (2024) Vic Carmen Sonne

THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE Trailer (2024) Vic Carmen Sonne

THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE Trailer (2024) Vic Carmen Sonne
© 2025 - MUBI

"The world is a horrible place. But we need to believe it's not so." Mubi has revealed the official trailer for a striking, unsettling gothic tale called The Girl with the Needle, made by acclaimed Danish filmmaker Magnus von Horn (The Here After, Sweat). This initially premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival earlier this year in the Main Competition section, and it also showed up at Karlovy Vary, TIFF, Vancouver, Chicago, Montclair, and Beyond Fest. The B&W thriller is set in the depths of Copenhagen in 1919. A young worker finds herself unemployed and pregnant. She meets Dagmar, who runs an underground adoption agency. A strong connection grows but her world shatters when she stumbles on the shocking truth behind her work. Inspired by a true story, which is even scarier to realize. The film features an extraordinarily haunting score by Frederikke Hoffmeier (aka Puce Mary), with cinematography by Michael Dymek. It has been on my mind ever since that Cannes premiere many months ago - I've been curious about revisiting it because it is so freaky and so beautifully shot. Starring Vic Carmen Sonne and Trine Dyrholm, with Besir Zeciri, Ava Knox Martin, & Joachim Fjelstrup. What a film! A must see for cinephiles anywhere & everywhere.

Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Magnus von Horn's The Girl with the Needle, from YouTube:

The Girl with the Needle Film

The Girl with the Needle Poster

The Girl with the Needle follows Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne), a young factory worker, struggling to survive in post WWI in 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. The Girl with the Needle, also known as Pigen med nålen in Danish, is directed by acclaimed Danish filmmaker Magnus von Horn, director of the films The Here After and Sweat previously, and a few other shorts. The screenplay is written by Line Langebek Knudsen and Magnus von Horn. Produced by Malene Blenkov and Mariusz Wlodarski. This initially premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival in the Main Competition earlier this year. Mubi will debut The Girl with the Needle in select US theaters starting December 6th, 2024 coming soon. Anyone intrigued?
The Girl with the Needle

Festival poster
Danish Pigen med nålen
Directed by Magnus von Horn
Written by
Magnus von Horn
Line Langebek
Produced by
Malene Blenkov
Mariusz Włodarski
Starring
Vic Carmen Sonne
Trine Dyrholm
Besir Zeciri
Joachim Fjelstrup
Tessa Hoder
Avo Knox Martin
Cinematography Michał Dymek
Edited by Agnieszka Glinska
Music by Frederikke Hoffmeier
Production
companies
Nordisk Film Denmark
Lava Films
Nordisk Film Sweden
Film i Väst
EC1 Łódź
Lower Silesia Film Centre
Distributed by
Nordisk Film Distribution (Denmark)
Gutek Film (Poland)
NonStop Entertainment (Sweden)
Release dates
15 May 2024 (Cannes)
17 January 2025 (Poland)
23 January 2025 (Denmark)
Running time 115 minutes
Countries
Denmark
Poland
Sweden
Language Danish
Box office $38,980[1][2]
The Girl with the Needle (Danish: Pigen med nålen) is a 2024 historical psychological horror film directed by Magnus von Horn, from a screenplay written by von Horn and Line Langebek. It is very loosely based on the true story of Danish serial killer Dagmar Overbye, who manipulated impoverished mothers into leaving their unwanted children in her care, as adoptees, and subsequently murdered them. She was first sentenced to death in 1921, but it was later changed into a lifetime in prison. Overbye remains Denmark's most prolific serial killer.[3][4]

The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered on 15 May 2024 to critical acclaim. It was named one of the top 5 international films of 2024 by the National Board of Review.[5] The film was chosen as the Danish entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards.[6][7]

Plot
In Copenhagen, young pregnant Karoline takes on a position as a wet nurse for an older woman named Dagmar to help support herself. Dagmar operates a clandestine adoption agency under the guise of a candy shop, assisting disadvantaged mothers place their unwanted newborns in foster homes. Karoline grows close to Dagmar, but she is soon faced with the nightmarish reality she unwittingly entered.

Cast
Vic Carmen Sonne as Karoline
Trine Dyrholm as Dagmar
Besir Zeciri as Peter
Joachim Fjelstrup as Jørgen
Tessa Hoder as Frida
Avo Knox Martin as Erena
Anders Hove as the Judge
Ari Alexander as Svendsen
Production
The Girl with the Needle is Magnus von Horn's third feature, after The Here After (2015) and Sweat (2020). He described it as a "fairy tale for grownups" and was motivated "not to just make a straight genre piece [but] to flirt with genre. That became a great lens to look at the story, for me and the cinematographer and the set designers and the costumes."[8] The film was produced by Malene Blenkov for Nordisk Film Denmark and Mariusz Wlodarski for Lava Films (Poland), in co-production with Nordisk Film Sweden.[3]

Release

The Girl with the Needle world premiere night at 2024 Cannes Film Festival
The Girl with the Needle was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 15 May 2024.[9] It made its North American premiere in the Special Presentations section at the 49th Toronto International Film Festival on 5 September 2024.[10] The film has also been selected for the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2024, where it will be screened under the World Cinema section.[11]

International sales were handled by The Match Factory, whose parent Mubi acquired distribution rights to the film for North and Latin America, United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Turkey and India a few days after its premiere.[12][13] The film premiered in New York and Los Angeles on 6 December 2024.[6] Gutek Film is set to distribute the film in Poland on 17 January 2025, under the title Dziewczyna z igłą.[14] Nordisk Film Distribution is set to release the film in Denmark on 23 January 2025.[6]

Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 58 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.8/10. The website's consensus reads: "Threading its grim tale through sumptuous black-and-white photography, The Girl with the Needle is a haunting parable made with superb craft."[15] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 82 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[16]

The reviews from Cannes described the film as "grippingly acted";[17] a "sombre, commercially uncompromising work";[18] and a "poetic and dark fairy tale."[19]

Accolades
Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Cannes Film Festival 25 May 2024 Palme d'Or Magnus von Horn Nominated [20]
Camerimage 23 November 2024 Golden Frog Michał Dymek Won [21][22]
European Film Awards 7 December 2024 European Actress Trine Dyrholm Nominated [23]
[24]
Vic Carmen Sonne Nominated
European Screenwriter Magnus von Horn and Line Langebek Nominated
European Production Design Jagna Dobesz Won [25]
[26]
European Original Score Frederikke Hoffmeier Won
Golden Globe Awards 5 January 2025 Best Motion Picture – Non-English Language The Girl with the Needle Pending [27]
Gdynia Film Festival 27 September 2024 Polish Film Abroad Festivals And Reviews Award Magnus von Horn Won [28]
Young Jury Award Won
Arthouse Cinemas Network Award Won
Journalists Award Won
Best Casting Award Tanja Grunwald Won
28 September 2024 Silver Lions The Girl with the Needle Won [29]
Best Actress in a Supporting Role Trine Dyrholm Won
Best Cinematography Michał Dymek Won
Best Music Frederikke Hoffmeier Won
Best Art Direction Jagna Dobesz Won
Best Costume Design Małgorzata Fudala Won
National Board of Review 7 January 2025 Top Five International Films The Girl with the Needle Won [30]
San Diego Film Critics Society 9 December 2024 Best Foreign Language Film Pending [31]
See also
List of submissions to the 97th Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film
List of Danish submissions for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film
References
"Pigen med nålen (2024)". The Numbers. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
"The Girl with the Needle (2024)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
Pham, Annika (18 January 2024). "The Match Factory Snaps Up 'Sweat' Director Magnus von Horn's First Genre Pic, 'The Girl With the Needle' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 1 March 2024. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
Lerche Kristiansen, Annegerd (15 October 2017). "Vidste du… at denne kvinde er danmarkshistoriens største seriemorder?" (in Danish). DR. Archived from the original on 26 May 2023. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
"2024 Archives". National Board of Review. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
"'Pigen med nålen' er Danmarks Oscar-kandidat". Danish Film Institute (in Danish). 19 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
Tartaglione, Nancy (19 September 2024). "Oscars: Denmark Selects 'The Girl With The Needle' As Best International Feature Submission". Deadline. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
Vourlias, Christopher (10 May 2024). "Magnus von Horn's Cannes Contender 'The Girl With the Needle' Unveils First Clip (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
"The Screenings Guide of the 77th Festival de Cannes". Festival de Cannes. 8 May 2024. Archived from the original on 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
"The Girl with the Needle". Toronto International Film Festival. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
Deb, Deepshikha (30 September 2024). "MAMI Mumbai Film Festival Unveils 2024 Official Lineup". High On Films. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
Abbatescianni, Davide (10 May 2024). "The Match Factory pins its hopes on four competition titles at Cannes". Cineuropa. Retrieved 13 May 2024.
Keslassy, Elsa; Ritman, Alex (18 May 2024). "Mubi Acquires Magnus von Horn's Chilling Cannes Competition Entry 'The Girl With the Needle'". Variety. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
"Dziewczyna z igłą" (in Polish). Gutek Film. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
"The Girl with the Needle". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 9 December 2024. Edit this at Wikidata
"The Girl with the Needle". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
Bradshaw, Peter (16 May 2024). "The Girl With the Needle review – horrific drama based on Denmark's 1921 baby-killer case". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
Lodge, Guy (15 May 2024). "'The Girl With the Needle' Review: Magnus von Horn's Expressionistic Nightmare of Women Abandoned by Society". Variety. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
Utichi, Joe (15 May 2024). "'The Girl With The Needle' Review: Magnus Von Horn's Dark Fairytale Retelling Of Denmark's Most Infamous Serial Murder Case Is Beguiling – Cannes Film Festival". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
Ntim, Zac (11 April 2024). "Cannes Film Festival Lineup Set: Competition Includes Coppola, Audiard, Cronenberg, Arnold, Lanthimos, Sorrentino & Abbasi's Trump Movie — Full List". Deadline. Archived from the original on 10 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
Giardina, Carolyn (30 October 2024). "'Gladiator 2,' 'Dune 2,' 'Blitz' Among Camerimage's 2024 Main Competition Lineup". Variety. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
Brzeski, Patrick (23 November 2024). "Camerimage: Gripping Danish Drama 'The Girl With the Needle' Wins Golden Frog". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
Szalai, Georg (5 November 2024). "European Film Awards: 'The Substance,' 'Emilia Pérez,' 'The Room Next Door,' Daniel Craig, Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton Among Nominees". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
"Nominations 2024". European Film Academy. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
Dams, Tim (13 November 2024). "'The Substance', 'The Girl With The Needle' lead craft winners at European Film Awards". Screen International. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
"Excellence Awards Winners 2024". European Film Academy. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
VanHoose, Benjamin (9 December 2024). "2025 Golden Globe Nominations: 'Wicked,' 'The Substance,' 'The Bear' and 'Shōgun' All Score". People.com. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
"YOUNG GALA | WINNERS OF THE 49TH PFF". Festiwal Polskich Filmów Fabularnych. 27 September 2024. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
"WINNERS OF THE 49th PFF". Festiwal Polskich Filmów Fabularnych. 30 September 2024. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
"NATIONAL BOARD OF REVIEW NAMES 2024 HONOREES". National Board of Review. 4 December 2024. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
"2024 San Diego Film Critics Society Nominations". San Diego Film Critics Society. 6 December 2024. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
External links
The Girl with the Needle at IMDb Edit this at Wikidata
vte
Films directed by Magnus von Horn
vte
Danish submissions for Academy Award for Best International Feature Film
Categories: 2024 films2024 drama films2020s Swedish films2020s psychological horror filmsFilms directed by Magnus von HornDanish crime drama filmsDanish drama filmsDanish horror filmsDanish thriller filmsDanish black-and-white filmsFilms set in CopenhagenPolish drama filmsPolish horror filmsPolish thriller filmsPolish black-and-white filmsSwedish drama filmsSwedish horror filmsSwedish thriller filmsSwedish black-and-white filmsNordisk Film films
Vic Carmen Sonne

Sonne at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival
Born Victoria Carmen Sonne
23 April 1994 (age 30)
Copenhagen, Denmark
Education Danish National School of Performing Arts
Occupation Actress
Years active 2011–present
Victoria "Vic" Carmen Sonne (born 23 April 1994) is a Danish actress. She is best known for her roles in the films Winter Brothers (2017), Holiday (2018), Godland (2022), and The Girl with the Needle (2024). She has won two Bodil Awards and one Robert Award.

Early life
Sonne was born and raised in Copenhagen.[1][2] She is of Polish, Persian, and Russian descent.[3] She attended the Akademiet For Utæmmet Kreativitet [da] and was admitted to the Danish National School of Performing Arts at the age of 17.[2][4] She graduated in 2016.[3]

She has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.[1]

Career
She auditioned for Simon Staho's 2011 film Love Is in the Air after seeing an ad in MetroXpress seeking out actors.[2][3]

Filmography
Film
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2011 Rebounce Mie [5]
Love Is in the Air Therese [6]
2012 You & Me Forever Sofie [3]
2014 Teenland [da] Sally Short film [7]
2015 The Elite [da] Asta [8]
Melon Rainbow [da] Melissa Short film [4]
2016 Copenhague: A Love Story Victoria [9]
In the Blood Emilie [10]
2017 Winter Brothers Anna [11]
Songs in the Sun [da] Julie [12]
2018 Holiday Sascha [13]
Neon Heart [da] Laura [14]
2019 Psychosia [da] Jenny [15]
2021 Miss Osaka Ines / April [16]
2022 Godland Anna [17]
Det Vi Plejer Mira Short film [18]
2024 Azrael Miriam [19]
The Girl with the Needle Karoline [20]
Eksplosjoner i Hjertet Billy [21]
2025 The Birthday Party Sofia [22]
Television
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2021 Red Election Katrine Poulson 10 episodes [23]
2022 The Kingdom Medical student 5 episodes [24]
2024 Bullshit [sv] Bettina 6 episodes [25]
The Helicopter Heist [26]
Awards and nominations
Award Year Category Nominated work Result Ref.
Bodil Awards 2017 Best Actress in a Supporting Role In the Blood Won [4]
2019 Best Actress in a Leading Role Holiday Won
2020 Neon Heart [da] Nominated [27]
Berlin International Film Festival 2020 EFP Shooting Star Won [28]
European Film Awards 2024 Best Actress The Girl with the Needle Pending [29]
Oldenburg International Film Festival 2018 Seymour Cassel Award Holiday Won [30]
Robert Awards 2017 Best Actress in a Supporting Role In the Blood Nominated [31]
2018 Winter Brothers Won [32]
2019 Best Actress in a Leading Role Holiday Nominated [33]
2020 Best Actress in a Supporting Role Psychosia [da] Nominated [34]
Best Actress in a Leading Role Neon Heart [da] Nominated
2022 Miss Osaka Nominated [35]
2023 Godland Nominated [36]
References
Rimkjær, Louise (5 December 2022). "Vic og Elliott er dansk films nye stærke makkerpar". Heartbeats (in Danish). Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Buth Olsen, Nina (9 September 2021). "Victoria Carmen Sonne var afhængig af film som barn, snød sig ind i biografen og blev et af Danmarks største skuespiltalenter". Euroman (in Danish). Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Tabart, Malene (29 September 2018). "Stjerneskuddet Victoria Carmen Sonne: »Det kan også godt være, at jeg har en rigtig stor hemmelighed«". Soundvenue (in Danish). Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Skov Andersen, Astrid (3 March 2019). "24-årig Bodil-vinder er virkelig en gåde, siger anmelder". TV 2 Nyheder (in Danish). Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Nilsson, Thomas (26 August 2022). "Intervju: Victoria Carmen Sonne". HemmaBiotidningen (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Shiffman, Allyson (9 September 2021). "Danish actress Victoria Carmen Sonne on her sexuality, shoplifting and her new film, Miss Osaka". Vogue Scandinavia. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Tabart, Malene (15 December 2019). "Victoria Carmen Sonne: »Det lukkede afsnit er virkelig et voldsomt sted«". Soundvenue (in Danish). Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Hopewell, John (2 August 2017). "Locarno: Trailer of Hlynur Pálmason's 'Winter Brothers' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Lussier, Marc-André (22 May 2020). "Copenhague – A Love Story: le début de quelque chose… ★★★". La Presse (in French). Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Rossing Jensen, Jorn (8 July 2015). "Rasmus Heisterberg is on his own for the first time, but he has it In the Blood". Cineuropa. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Galuppo, Mia (17 October 2017). "AFI Fest: New Auteurs and American Independents Lineup Announced". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Dam, Freja (8 October 2017). "'Sange i solen': Uforklarlig ondskab i dansk no budget-thriller". Soundvenue (in Danish). Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Branch, Kate (1 February 2018). "Meet the Rising Actress Who Gets Her Danish Blonde From a Drugstore Bottle". Vogue. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Young, Neil (3 October 2018). "'Neon Heart': Film Review | San Sebastian 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Economou, Vassilis (13 June 2018). "Shooting is under way on Marie Grahtø's thoroughly female debut, Psychosia". Cineuropa. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Economou, Vassilis (18 December 2018). "Daniel Dencik shooting Miss Osaka in Japan". Cineuropa. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Bunbury, Stephanie (27 May 2022). "Cannes Review: Hlynur Palmason's 'Godland'". Deadline. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Bruun, Nicki (14 June 2022). "Se stortalenters debutfilm hos Ekko". Filmmagasinet Ekko (in Danish). Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Grobar, Matt (6 March 2024). "Universal Vampire Flick 'Abigail' Set To Close Out Overlook Film Festival – View Full Lineup". Deadline. Archived from the original on 14 April 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Wise, Damon (15 May 2024). "Director Magnus Von Horn Steps Up To The Cannes Competition With 'The Girl With The Needle': "It Was A Story That Provoked Me Very Deeply" — Ones To Watch". Deadline. Archived from the original on 12 July 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Goodfellow, Melanie (25 June 2021). "Totem boards Yenni Lee's polyamorous love story 'Explosions In The Heart' (exclusive)". Screen Daily. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Lodderhose, Diana (26 August 2024). "'The Birthday Party': Heretic Wraps Production On Tycoon Family Drama With 'Poor Things' Star Willem Dafoe". Deadline. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Kanter, Jake (12 May 2021). "Stephen Dillane, Lydia Leonard & James D'Arcy Lead Viaplay/A+E Networks Spy Noir 'Red Election'". Deadline. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Bregndahl, Frederik (23 February 2022). "Prominente skuespillere vender tilbage i ikonisk serie". Se og Hør (in Danish). Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Abbatescianni, Davide (5 December 2022). "Viaplay announces its next original, the coming-of-age drama series Bullshit". Cineuropa. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Domellöf-Wik, Maria (16 May 2024). "Göteborgs "sjaskiga stadsmiljö" gör succé i Cannes". Göteborgs-Posten (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
"Bodil-nomineringer 2020". Danish Film Institute (in Danish). 13 January 2020. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Roxborough, Scott (8 January 2020). "European Shooting Stars 2020 Unveiled". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Szalai, Georg (5 November 2024). "European Film Awards: 'The Substance,' 'Emilia Pérez,' 'The Room Next Door,' Daniel Craig, Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton Among Nominees". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
Roxborough, Scott (16 September 2018). "'Temporary Difficulties' Wins 2018 Oldenburg Film Festival". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
"Nominees for the industry's Robert Awards". Danish Film Institute. 13 January 2017. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Economou, Vassilis (5 February 2018). "Winter Brothers conquers the 34th Robert Awards". Cineuropa. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
"Oscar-shortlisted The Guilty wins big at Danish Robert Awards". Danish Film Institute. 4 February 2019. Archived from the original on 10 February 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Pham, Annika (9 January 2020). "Daniel, And Then We Danced, favourites at Denmark's Robert and Sweden's Guldbagge nominations". Nordisk Film & TV Fond. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
Albrechtsen, Johan (4 January 2022). "Nyhed: Robert-prisen 2022: Masser af kendte navne, dygtige debutanter og store titler blandt årets nominerede". Moovy (in Danish). Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
"Robert-nomineringer 2023". Danish Film Institute (in Danish). 6 January 2023. Archived from the original on 8 January 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
External links
Vic Carmen Sonne at IMDb Edit this at Wikidata
Authority control databases Edit this at Wikidata
International
ISNIVIAF
National
GermanyUnited StatesFranceBnF dataNorway
People
Deutsche Biographie
Other
IdRef
Categories: 1994 birthsLiving people21st-century Danish actressesActresses from CopenhagenDanish film actressesDanish people of Iranian descentDanish people of Polish descentDanish people of Russian descentDanish television actressesPeople with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
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.
Title: The Girl With The Needle
Section: Competition
Director: Magnus Von Horn
Logline: In Copenhagen, at the end of the First World War, a young worker named Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne) finds herself unemployed and pregnant. She meets Dagmar (Trine Dyrholm), who runs an underground adoption agency.
Sales Agent: The Match Factory
Panelists: Director Magnus Von Horn and actors Trine Dyrholm and Vic Carmen Sonne
Key quote: “There was a real crime that happened [during the First World War] in Denmark, in Copenhagen, and it was the inspiration for this story. It was a really horrible story that was brought to me five years ago by my producer Malene Blenkov and writer Line Langbek, and it was a story that really scared me and provoked me. I have kids of my own. They were very young at the time, and the fear of something happening to them is my worst fear. But when I get that fear, it’s also something that has an inspirational effect on me. It’s a kind of fuel that makes me want to do something with it, want to write something about it, want to develop it. Since then, it has evolved into many other things, and it has been a long journey. But I would say that was the beginning.” – Magnus Von Horn

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From the opening moments of the delicately haunting film “The Girl With the Needle” (titled “PIGEN MED NÅLEN” in Danish), nightmarishly beautiful black-and-white visuals are made even more macabrely mesmerizing by a stellar score. Telling a tragic story of a woman trying to survive the casual cruelty of a society living in the shadow of World War 1, it is a subtly devastating experience that teeters on the edge of full-blown horror before diving all the way in. As you find yourself immersed in the film’s quiet terrors, it emerges as an evocative and unsparing work, facing down a gathering darkness that has the power to swallow you whole. Once it does, it begins to descend even further.

Premiering Wednesday evening in competition at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, the latest film from director Magnus von Horn is his first to take us back in time. His past features have always been about more modern experiences, but this taps into something more terrifyingly timeless. In a screenplay he co-wrote with Line Langebek Knudsen, we get taken into the tumultuous life of Karoline as she finds herself trying to keep her head above water.

Perfectly played with a visceral poise by Vic Carmen Sonne, she just can’t seem to catch a break. In the very first scene, she is getting evicted by her landlord who, despite hemming and hawing about how kind he is, is still throwing her out on the street. On top of that, her husband has gone missing while serving in the war. When she forms a relationship with her supposedly loving boss and becomes pregnant with his child, he too abandons her under familial pressure.

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This is then all changed when she meets the mysterious Dagmar, who runs a secretive adoption agency out of her candy store meant to ostensibly help women with no options. Played by a terrific Trine Dyrholm, she is a no-nonsense operator who still manages to win Karoline over. Though their relationship is initially transactional, it soon becomes something more thorny. Neither is perfect, but they seem to have found some shared understanding about the way the world functions. There is little salvation in life, but they may hope to maybe find it in the other.

Very quickly, the duo’s lives become sewn together. Karolina steps into the role of both wet nurse and companion to Dagmar, nursing the babies that are left with them one day while going to the movies on another. It soon becomes clear that neither really has anyone else to turn to for help. Karoline does have a past that comes knocking, but Dagmar remains more impenetrable. She has a young girl she takes care of, but all else is hazy. When it gets brought into focus for Karoline, everything she has put her faith in may soon get washed away and drown her with it.

Details on this revelation are best left vague to preserve the viewing experience, but there is a history the film is drawing from which may get picked up by those with knowledge of certain names. However, rather than being some sort of dreary historical drama, “The Girl With the Needle’ is a formally fascinating film with bold visuals and score worth praising.

Cinematographer Michal Dymek, who previously worked on the spectacular upcoming film “A Real Pain,” makes every frame into one that feels rich and alive even as death looms. The way even the most basic of settings, be they a confined apartment or a sinister stage performance in a tent, get captured here is nothing short of stunning. You can feel every facet of the world being built, ensuring everything proves suffocating even as it is beautiful to behold. When it dances away into the more ephemeral via a series of recurring shots of shifting faces, Dymek doesn’t miss a beat and, with great editing by Agnieszka Glinska, makes it all astounding.

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This is then made even more memorable by a propulsive and petrifying score by composer Frederikke Hoffmeier that splits apart everything on screen whenever it rises up. It is a score that demands you notice it and earns every moment, making the visuals feel like they’re being conjured up from the depths of somewhere even deeper in the psyche. Much like how Mica Levi has become known for crafting compositions that instill every frame with something distinctly and ethereally frightening, this is a score that feels like something entirely its own. Hoffmeier ensures everything is that much more haunting as every note carries spine-chilling resonance.

When all of this then comes back to Dyrholm and Sonne, both are operating on just the right wavelength to ground these technical achievements in the emotions of their characters. Though it almost feels as though there could have been more time spent at the end letting things linger, the final moments we spend with them speaks volumes. Each embodies their characters fully and completely even as the film can hold them at a bit of a distance from us at key junctures.

Much of this is necessary, as the key revelation can only land if we too are being kept in the dark, and the duo doesn’t let it stop them from getting us right into the very heart of each of them. When all is finally laid bare, the immense agony is grounded in two lost people in a life that itself feels like it is falling out of balance. They may find each other, but, as was inevitable in a world that had come to be defined by such suffering, the loss that follows is even greater.
The Girl with the Needle, directed by Magnus von Horn and co-written by Line Langebek Knudsen, will debut in UK and Irish cinemas in January through MUBI.

The film received its World Premiere in Competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, and stars Vic Carmen Sonne (Neon Heart, Godland), Trine Dyrholm (The Commune, Queen of Hearts, Mary and George), Besir Zeciri (Wildland), and Joachim Fjelstrup (Itsi Bitsi).

Young factory worker Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne) is struggling to survive in post-WWI Copenhagen. When she ends up unemployed, abandoned and pregnant, the charismatic Dagmar (Trine Dyrholm) takes her in as a wet-nurse at an underground adoption agency which finds foster homes for unwanted children. A deep connection forms between them, until a shocking discovery suddenly shatters Karoline’s world.

Specifically, MUBI will debut the film on screens on 10th January 2025.
Swedish-Polish director Magnus von Horn’s dark period drama “The Girl With the Needle” will compete for the Palme d’Or at the 77th Cannes Film Festival. Variety has been given exclusive access to a first-look clip from the film.

Written by von Horn and Line Langebek (“I’ll Come Running”), “The Girl With the Needle” is loosely based on the true story of Dagmar Overbye, a Danish woman who established an underground adoption agency in post-World War I Copenhagen to help poor women dealing with unwanted pregnancies.

Starring Trine Dyrholm (“In a Better World,” “Queen of Hearts”), Vic Carmen Sonne (“Godland,” “Holiday”) and Besir Zeciri (“Wildland”), the film follows Karoline (Sonne), a young factory worker who is struggling to survive on the fringes of society. When she finds herself unemployed, abandoned and pregnant, she meets Dagmar (Dyrholm), a charismatic shopkeeper who helps poor mothers to find foster homes for their unwanted children.

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With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet-nurse, and a strong connection forms between the two women. But Karoline’s world shatters when she stumbles upon the shocking truth behind her work.

Popular on Variety
In the exclusive clip below, Karoline arrives at Dagmar’s doorstep and appeals to the woman for help in finding her newborn a home:

Von Horn’s third feature marks a stylistic departure from his previous movies. Lensed in moody black-and-white by “Sweat” cinematographer Michal Dymek, it is both the director’s first foray into period drama and his first stab at genre.

Describing the film as a “fairy tale for grownups,” von Horn says he was motivated “not to just make a straight genre piece [but] to flirt with genre.” “That became a great lens to look at the story, for me and the cinematographer and the set designers and the costumes,” he says.

Born in Göteborg, Sweden, and an alumnus of Poland’s venerable Lodz Film School, von Horn has become a regular fixture in Cannes since his feature debut, “The Here After,” premiered in the festival’s Directors’ Fortnight sidebar in 2015. His sophomore effort, “Sweat,” was also part of the festival’s official selection during its 2020 pandemic edition, and would go on to travel widely, securing U.S. distribution with Mubi.

“The Girl With the Needle” is produced by the Nordisk Film Creative Alliance in co-production with Lava Films and Nordisk Film Production Sverige. It’s co-produced with Film i Väst, EC1 Łódź Film Fund and the Lower Silesia Film Center and co-financed by the Danish Film Institute, the Polish Film Institute, the Swedish Film Institute, DR, SVT, Nordisk Film & TV Fond and Eurimages and Creative Europe Media. The producers are Malene Blenkov and Mariusz Włodarski. The executive producers are Henrik Zein, Calle Marthin, Katrine Vogelsang and Lone Scherfig. The Match Factory is handling world sales.

The Cannes Film Festival runs May 14 – 25.

Read More About:
Cannes Film Festival, Magnus von Horn
Swedish-Polish director Magnus von Horn’s dark period drama “The Girl With the Needle” will compete for the Palme d’Or at the 77th Cannes Film Festival. Variety has been given exclusive access to a first-look clip from the film.

Written by von Horn and Line Langebek (“I’ll Come Running”), “The Girl With the Needle” is loosely based on the true story of Dagmar Overbye, a Danish woman who established an underground adoption agency in post-World War I Copenhagen to help poor women dealing with unwanted pregnancies.

Starring Trine Dyrholm (“In a Better World,” “Queen of Hearts”), Vic Carmen Sonne (“Godland,” “Holiday”) and Besir Zeciri (“Wildland”), the film follows Karoline (Sonne), a young factory worker who is struggling to survive on the fringes of society. When she finds herself unemployed, abandoned and pregnant, she meets Dagmar (Dyrholm), a charismatic shopkeeper who helps poor mothers to find foster homes for their unwanted children.

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PS5 and Xbox controllers as the wings on a dove carrying an olive branch
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With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet-nurse, and a strong connection forms between the two women. But Karoline’s world shatters when she stumbles upon the shocking truth behind her work.

Popular on Variety
In the exclusive clip below, Karoline arrives at Dagmar’s doorstep and appeals to the woman for help in finding her newborn a home:

Von Horn’s third feature marks a stylistic departure from his previous movies. Lensed in moody black-and-white by “Sweat” cinematographer Michal Dymek, it is both the director’s first foray into period drama and his first stab at genre.

Describing the film as a “fairy tale for grownups,” von Horn says he was motivated “not to just make a straight genre piece [but] to flirt with genre.” “That became a great lens to look at the story, for me and the cinematographer and the set designers and the costumes,” he says.

Born in Göteborg, Sweden, and an alumnus of Poland’s venerable Lodz Film School, von Horn has become a regular fixture in Cannes since his feature debut, “The Here After,” premiered in the festival’s Directors’ Fortnight sidebar in 2015. His sophomore effort, “Sweat,” was also part of the festival’s official selection during its 2020 pandemic edition, and would go on to travel widely, securing U.S. distribution with Mubi.

“The Girl With the Needle” is produced by the Nordisk Film Creative Alliance in co-production with Lava Films and Nordisk Film Production Sverige. It’s co-produced with Film i Väst, EC1 Łódź Film Fund and the Lower Silesia Film Center and co-financed by the Danish Film Institute, the Polish Film Institute, the Swedish Film Institute, DR, SVT, Nordisk Film & TV Fond and Eurimages and Creative Europe Media. The producers are Malene Blenkov and Mariusz Włodarski. The executive producers are Henrik Zein, Calle Marthin, Katrine Vogelsang and Lone Scherfig. The Match Factory is handling world sales.

The Cannes Film Festival runs May 14 – 25.

Read More About:
Cannes Film Festival, Magnus von Horn