The Danish Girl

Movie review by Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media
The Danish Girl Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 17+

Great performance in fact-based transgender story.

R 2015 120 minutes
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Parents say

age 16+

Based on 3 reviews

Kids say

age 14+

Based on 8 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that The Danish Girl is based on the true story of the first transgender person to attempt a sex-change operation (played by Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne), and it could prove inspiring to transgender/LGTBQ viewers and those connected to or concerned about them. The sexual content and discussions about transgenderism are handled thoughtfully and carefully, but you can expect scenes of graphic male and female nudity (including full-frontal images) and sex. Bullies beat up the main character (some blood shown), and there are some intense discussions. Language isn't really an issue, but because the story is set in the 1920s, characters smoke cigarettes frequently. There's also cigar smoking, social drinking (champagne), and some prescription pill use.

Community Reviews

Adin_the_pansexual
Adin_the_pansexual Adult
December 23, 2019
age 14+

It depends on the kid

I would watch through the movie and decide if your kid is mature enough to watch it my child who is 13 I thought was mature enough to watch seeing as they had had "the talk" and they enjoyed the movie and had no problems I believe we shouldn't shun kids away from things like sex it makes it seem like a forbidden fruit they want to have so I believe a solid mature 13 14 year old would benefit from the movie

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
mikaylalwrites
mikaylalwrites Adult
July 7, 2019
age 16+
There is one major issue with this movie no one has addressed here, Eddie Redmayne (as much as I love his acting in this movie) should not have played Lili Elbe. Also, Gerda eventually identified as a lesbian, which should have been kept. Redmayne is a cisgender male. He's good at playing things he isn't but a trans woman should have played Lili Elbe. End of story. Redmayne is, in my opinion, a phenomenal actor. He can easily make a person laugh, cry, love, or hate his characters. This movie is a good example. At the end of the movie, I bawled like baby. He convinced me that he was Lili Elbe and that is what good actors do. The sex scenes are there but considering the length and pace of this movie, they aren't long or gratuitous. There is really, really mild violence against Lili when she first starts dressing the way she wants (as a woman but since she looks male, this is an issue.) It's terrible but it's necessary to show. There is also nudity outside of sex in this movie. Unless you'd like to see Eddie Redmayne or Alicia Vikander naked full-frontal, you might want to skip those parts or the movie entirely. It wasn't too unpleasant though. If you want to show your kids this for its essential plot, go ahead. The movie has great messages and role models. I'd recommend skipping ahead if sitting in the same room with your child during any type of nudity proves uncomfortable for you.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
Too much sex
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In early 1920s Copenhagen, Einar Wegener (Eddie Redmayne) and his wife, Gerda (Alicia Vikander), are happily living and working as artists. When a model doesn't show up one day, Gerda asks Einar to pose while wearing a dress. Einar finds the experience profoundly changing and decides he wants to go to a party dressed as a woman; Gerda cheerfully agrees. After a tentative kiss from a partygoer (Ben Whishaw), it becomes clear that this is more than just dress-up for Einar. He realizes that he already considers himself a woman, whom he calls Lili, and is trapped in the wrong body. Einar begins living as Lili, and when she learns of a surgeon (Sebastian Koch) who has developed an experimental procedure to change a person's sex, Lili knows she has no choice but to try.

Is It Any Good?

Best director Oscar-winner Tom Hooper has delivered another ready-made movie for awards season -- polite, highly polished, and perhaps a bit safe, but with another great performance by Redmayne. The star (who won the Academy Award for The Theory of Everything) achieves another complete transformation here, subtly changing from awkward to comfortable in his female identity. The Gerda role is less strong; she only gets to react to Einar/Lili, and Vikander can't fully bring her to life.

THE DANISH GIRL is somewhat disappointingly handled with kid gloves; it's soft, falling back on montages and skipping over emotional uncertainties. But Hooper (The King's Speech, Les Miserables) and cinematographer Danny Cohen mirror the main characters' artistic creations with strikingly beautiful landscapes, and Hooper adds drama with his trademark use of characters placed in odd corners of the frame. Ultimately, it has some interesting things to say about sexual identity, and it's a good stepping stone.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how The Danish Girl handles the subject of sexuality. How much is shown and not shown? How does the tone of the nude scenes vary? Are some more "sexual" than others? Why do you think that is?

  • Talk about being transgender and what kinds of issues someone might face upon feeling as though they were born into the wrong physical body. Do you think the movie explains the situation well?

  • What do you think made the bully characters so angry about Lili's presence? Why do people often react violently to things they fear or don't understand?

Movie Details

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