There’s something achingly heartwrenching yet horrifying about The Girl With The Needle. The Danish film, directed by Magnus von Horn from a screenplay co-written with Line Langebek, opens with the face of a woman changing — stretching, morphing — into multiple others. It’s an ominous beginning that puts us on edge and prepares us for what’s to come. In some ways, the film is a horror; in others, it’s a true-crime story. At the heart of the movie are flawed, desperate women who are simply seeking to control the world around them when they know how limited their options truly are.

The Girl With The Needle, directed by Magnus von Horn, follows Karoline, a young factory worker in post-WWI Copenhagen, as she navigates abandonment and pregnancy. She encounters Dagmar, who operates a clandestine adoption agency within a candy store, offering aid to impoverished mothers seeking foster homes for their children.Director Magnus von Horn Release Date May 15, 2024 Writers Line Langebek Knudsen , Magnus von Horn Cast Vic Carmen Sonne , Trine Dyrholm , Besir Zeciri , Ava Knox Martin , Joachim Fjelstrup , Tessa Hoder , Ari Alexander , Søren Sætter-Lassen

The Girl with the Needle is loosely based on the true story of Dagmar Overbye (played here by Trine Dyrholm), who was convicted of murdering nine children (though it’s believed she killed up to 25) in 1921. Von Horn’s film is set in the years before Dagmar’s trial, to when she was seemingly a helpful shopkeeper who promised struggling women who gave up their newborns that they would be adopted by well-off families. One such woman was Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne) who, downtrodden after her wealthy lover refuses to marry her and shuns her, goes to Dagmar after giving birth.

The Girl With The Needle Taps Into Its Rich Dynamics

What follows is a surprising, layered, tumultuous, and twisted relationship that develops between Dagmar, Karoline — who becomes a wet nurse to support herself — and Dagmar’s daughter Erena (Avo Knox Martin). There are manipulation and power dynamics at play, but also a sense of loneliness that Dagmar and Karoline feel that is only heightened by their situations. But despite their tense relationship, they come to rely on each other in a world where no one else has shown them much care and where women are punished at every turn for having sex and being poor.

The film’s focus on the hardships women face — many of whom are forced to carry to term with no alternate options or means of supporting themselves or their children, especially after being abandoned like Karoline was — is its sweet spot. Even Dagmar, despite the film’s treatment of her as its primary villain, is shown some compassion. Crucially, none of these women are portrayed as “perfect” victims, nor do they have to be to be worthy of sympathy. Karoline can be a frustrating protagonist, but I understood where she was coming from, her yearning to be taken care of is clear.

Even Dagmar, despite the film’s treatment of her as its primary villain, is shown some compassion.

What van Horn and cinematographer Michal Dymek do here with post-World War I Copenhagen is complementary to the era. The Girl with the Needle is in no way opulent; not even when Karoline goes to the home of her wealthy boss. At that moment, Karoline stands out, but not when she’s on the streets or inside beaten-down homes and buildings. The black-and-white aesthetic elevates the desolation and the tragedy of Karoline’s situation. But it’s also a more realistic view of life post-war. People aren’t doing so well and that is reflected in the cinematography.

The Girl With The Needle Has Strong Themes & Performances
Vic Carmen Sonne & Trine Dyrholm Are Excellent

The film is rich in its themes and I’ve thought about them quite a bit, attempting to parse its message and its ending. With the focus being primarily on Karoline and her experiences (Dagmar is more of a supporting character), The Girl with the Needle is able to capture her dire circumstances and the desperation, pain, and heartache that stems from it. It would have been nice if the story had also focused more on the societal aspect that drives Karoline and Dagmar’s actions, especially since the film ends with Dagmar’s trial. But there’s enough depth here to counteract that.

The film is not an easy watch. It’s so dark and the emotional baggage, the twisted dynamics, and the overall story often feel so hopeless. The Girl with the Needle is great at exposing the details of the characters’ actions. There’s a focus on the abandonment of babies, but it’s a byproduct of these women being abandoned by family and society at large. A big part of the film’s success is due to its intricate performances. Trine Dyrholm is able to balance the stern, often cold-seeming Dagmar with a dash of vulnerability that her relationship with Karoline uncovers.

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Vic Carmen Sonne infuses Karoline with an initial sense of hope before reality crashes in. In Sonne’s hands, Karoline is equal parts curious and anguished, caring and wary. She carries a weight that’s never lifted, searching for the affection she’s been deprived of, which she finds (to some extent) with Erena. There are bouts of jealousy and deceptions that mask the central relationships, which are warped and deliciously intriguing at once. And while the film may meander some, von Horn and Langebek’s script never loses sight of the story, offering something that is deeply bleak but also worth thinking about.

The Girl with the Needle releases in theaters on December 6. The film is 123 minutes and not yet rated.

ProsThe story’s themes are deepThe performances are oustanding and layeredThe cinematography complements the narrative