While I was going to take a hiatus from Von Trier’s stuff after the last one, I wanted to finally check this show out. I had seen the Stephen King version, Kingdom Hospital, years earlier and was pretty underwhelmed by it, but I heard a lot of good things about the original, so I thought it would be worthwhile to look into it. So far, I’d say it’s pretty good and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes. It’s definitely much better done than King’s version, I can say that for sure. Before I go into my thoughts, I’ll give a general rundown of the story and premise.
The series is basically an ensemble piece about several folks that work at or frequent the neurosurgery ward of a Danish hospital known as The Kingdom. The hospital itself used to be a swampy marshland, and it seems like the swamp might be starting to come back (though it’s uncertain whether or not this is metaphorical yet). Stig Helmer, a Swedish surgeon, has been taken on as a new staff member, and the higher ups seem to have a lot of faith in him. However, it seems as though he’s not as competent as he claims to be, as he wasn’t so much “transferred” from Sweden as he was “run out.” Still, this doesn’t stop him from talking down all his Danish coworkers, and even going out to the roof every night to gaze at Sweden across the waters and curse the “Danish scum” he’s surrounded by. He probably shouldn’t be so cruel to the Danes, though, since another doctor, Hook, is trying to get evidence of Helmer’s botched brain surgery. Basically, he operated on a young girl named Mona and she was left a vegetable afterwards. Helmer is trying his best to keep his incompetence in this operation under wraps, even becoming part of the hospital’s exclusive lodge, but Hook is determined to find proof and use it against him. Hook is also forming a relationship with another doctor, Judith, who has been left pregnant by a former lover. The two resolve to keep the child, but it seems to be growing at a faster than normal rate. There’s also Mrs. Drusse, an old spiritualist who’s trying to keep herself interned at the hospital so that she can investigate a ghost girl who seems to be haunting the premises. She often employs her son Bulder, a grunt worker at the hospital, to help her on her various paranormal investigations. Other characters include Dr. Bondo, who has a malignant liver transplanted into his body so that he can claim it as his own and dissect it for his pathological studies; Mogge, the son of the head doctor, who tries to get with a nurse in the sleep department and even pranks her with a severed head he cut off from a donated body (he also signs up for the sleep department and experiences several nightmares, and one not-so-bad-mare); and the two dishwashers who appear to have down’s syndrome but are also acutely aware of all the goings on in the hospital, even the supernatural ones. I won’t spoil where everything goes, though I may have to in the next season review, so try to watch the show before then. For now, we’ll get on to my review.
So far, I’ve found this show to be pretty interesting and fun to watch. It’s not exactly a comedy, but there is enough levity and quirkiness in it to give it an enjoyable demented quality amongst the more serious and dark elements. All of the characters are well-defined and you want to see where each of their stories go, whether or not you’re actually rooting for them. Plus, the characters you’re rooting for aren’t favored by the show either, especially Helmer, who I’m certain is going to get screwed over at some point. I do have to wonder if the whole “Swedes vs Danes” thing he does is an actual thing in reality or if it’s just a him thing. Do any Nordic readers want to confirm that for me? Anyways, I also find the presentation to be rather interesting. The classic Von Trier handheld camera is featured here, but much like his other work, there are moments of more traditional cinematography, such as the aerial spinning shot of Helmer cursing the Danes every episode. There also seems to be an almost sepia-esque filter over the film, which seems to add to the odd and eerie atmosphere, like we’re in the real world but something doesn’t feel quite right. It could also be playing into the ancient origins of the hospital, as if the murkiness the area once had still lingers on to this day. That would certainly fit with what the intro narration states, but it might just be a theory on my part. There is some upsetting material in here that some audiences might not like, such as the vegetative little girl, what ultimately became of the ghost girl, and what results in the pregnancy plot, so I’ll warn you ahead of time that this might not be for the more sensitive or squeamish readers. Funnily, there’s actually a student nurse in this show that can’t handle real blood but is perfectly fine watching Texas Chainsaw Massacre when she’s on break. Overall, I’ve been enjoying this series so far, and it’s certainly better than Stephen King’s adaptation. That show started off decently interesting, but gradually petered out and couldn’t seem to keep an interesting momentum going. This show doesn’t have that problem, at least not so far, so I’d definitely recommend the original Kingdom over Kingdom Hospital. Before I go, I want to make note of two things. First, Von Trier fans will be pleased to know that Udo Kier is in this show, and he becomes involved in a way that I really didn’t expect, so be prepared for that. Second, I have to wonder if the Silent Hill people ever watched this show. Some of the vibe and look seems very similar to some of what you saw in those games. I don’t know if they ever mentioned this show as an influence, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was. Anyway, that’s about all I have to say at the moment, so I’ll conclude here for now.
I’m enjoying my watch through of this series and I encourage you all to at least watch the first season before the next blog post. The first two seasons are on DVD, though the second is a little more pricey than the first, at least from my experience. However, all three seasons are on MUBI, so anyone who has or is interested in that service can check it out in much better picture quality. Until next time, folks. I’d do the little sign-off thing that Von Trier does on the show, but I think that might be a little too clever-clever. I’ve been wanting to move away from the cute ending lines I was doing before, honestly.