Cold Case Hammarskjöld

Name: Cold Case Hammarskjöld
Genre: History, Animation, Documentary
Released: August 16, 2019
Duration: 128 min
Rating: 76
Cast: Custon Chipoya, Dag Hammarskjöld, Göran Björkdahl, Hans Corell, Hilding Björkdahl

2019

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Generally favorable reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 8 Ratings

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7.0	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 8 Ratings

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Cold Case Hammarskjold

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Movie Details & Credits

Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: August 16, 2019 | Not Rated

Starring: Custon Chipoya, Dag Hammarskjöld, Göran Björkdahl, Hans Corell, Hilding Björkdahl, Jan Beuckels, Mads Brügger, Neddy Banda, Pierre Coppens, Robert Cedars, Roger Bracco

Summary: Danish director Mads Brügger and Swedish private investigator Göran Björkdahl are trying to solve the mysterious death of Dag Hammarskjöld. As their investigation closes in, they discover a crime far worse than killing the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Director: Mads Brügger

Genre(s): History, Animation, Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 128 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Ann Hornaday

Aug 21, 2019

Funny, provocative and chilling, Cold Case Hammarskjold draws the viewer into that helix and manages to be improbably entertaining, even as it becomes increasingly, shockingly uncomfortable. It’s impossible to emerge from this film without being shaken to your core. Mission accomplished: Mind blown. Read full review

The Film Stage Jordan Raup

Feb 1, 2019

[A] thoroughly engrossing documentary. Read full review

Owen Gleiberman

Feb 1, 2019

Cold Case Hammarskjöld doesn’t offer the last word about the issues it raises. But it’s a movie that should be seen, grappled with, argued with, and experienced, because the questions it plants in us are dark enough to reverberate as powerfully as answers. Read full review

Chuck Bowen

Aug 14, 2019

The film is about a mystery that isn’t solved, and how that inconclusiveness spotlights the insidious functions of society. Read full review

Liam Lacey

Aug 15, 2019

Cold Case Hammarskjöld is likely to be divisive; I’m divided myself. Brügger’s awkward juxtaposition of clowning with real-life horrors is off-putting. In a time plagued by conspiracy theories, the film is an example of an acutely timely uneasiness, reminding us how conspiracies can be simultaneously toxic and compelling. Read full review

David Fear

Aug 17, 2019

It may be a bit of a stretch to call what Brügger delivers here a documentary, exactly — it’s a “true” crime story with an emphasis on the quotes. Read full review

William Bibbiani

Aug 15, 2019

The first half is a drowsy day at the office, full of complex paperwork minutiae that, too much of the time, doesn’t even pan out by the end of the movie. The second half is more horrifying to think about but less scrupulously presented and, as such, harder to believe. Read full review

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User Reviews

LegitSalt

May 8, 2020

Cold Case Hammarskjöld is at its surface an investigative piece about the untimely death of former UN secretary-general, Dag Hammarskjöld. Hammarskjöld, as the story goes, died in an aeroplane crash near Ndola, on his way to meet with Moise Tshombe to negotiate a peace treaty. During hisCold Case Hammarskjöld is at its surface an investigative piece about the untimely death of former UN secretary-general, Dag Hammarskjöld. Hammarskjöld, as the story goes, died in an aeroplane crash near Ndola, on his way to meet with Moise Tshombe to negotiate a peace treaty. During his time as secretary-general of the UN, Hammarskjöld was able to do a lot in the way of forwarding African independence. However, as Cold Case Hammarskjöld points out, Hammarskjöld’s death was very beneficial to many private and first world entities, setting back African independence and allowing for the continued exploitation of raw materials from the country. Cold Case Hammarskjöld follows Mads Brügger and Göran Björkdahl in their quest to uncover the truth about Hammarskjöld’s death. The two discover a secret white supremacist, eugenics mercenary group operating out of South Africa with ties to Hammarskjöld’s death and correspondences with the CIA and MI5 regarding a Belgian for hire pilot in the air during the same time as Hammarskjöld’s death. As the truth is revealed a horrifying reality begins to surface, the modern world is much more sinister than it lets on, and many people will do anything to keep making money. Despite its heavy subject matter, Cold Case Hammarskjöld has a genuinely comedic undertone brought about by the personalities of Brügger and Björkdahl. The movie is suspenseful and direly important, but most of all it is a call to action that has reopened the investigation of Dag Hammarskjöld’s untimely demise.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Brent_Marchant

Jun 26, 2020

This "documentary" investigating the death (i.e., likely assassination) of former UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold in a mysterious 1961 plane crash shamelessly blurs the line between legitimate journalism and cheeky speculation, with consequences that extend far beyond the demise of oneThis "documentary" investigating the death (i.e., likely assassination) of former UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold in a mysterious 1961 plane crash shamelessly blurs the line between legitimate journalism and cheeky speculation, with consequences that extend far beyond the demise of one individual. What starts out seeming like a valid inquiry into a long-unsolved mystery regrettably degenerates into a questionable spectacle that doesn't seem to take its own purpose seriously, prompting viewers to ask, "So what's the point of all this?" While the film does uncover what could be a horrific untold story if definitively proven true, the credibility of the information underlying such a possibility is undercut by a filmmaker who could ultimately just be jagging everybody's chain -- and with material that's no joking matter. And the problem with that is, should viable evidence ever surface behind the truth of these incidents, it's likely to be discounted by the travesty depicted here.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

vanVanvan

Nov 28, 2019

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This movie is entertaining, but the unproven story that a South African paramilitary organization was trying to spread aids throughout Africa with HIV-infected vaccines is a criminally irresponsible message. There are these conspiracy theories and people are afraid and suspicious of vaccines and aid organizations are having increasing difficulty vaccinating people against ebola and the even more deadly measles outbreak. Just yesterday four Ebola health workers were killed in Democratic Republic of Congo.

The last thing we need is someone reinforcing conspiracy theories to prop up a movie. The filmmaker should have stayed on subject, the possible murder of Dag Hammarskjold, even though he was not able to uncover anything new.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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