
“Riders of Justice” may be the film that eventually brings Anders Thomas Jensen international exposure beyond his normal spotlight as a sought-after screenwriter. It’s deliriously witty and so well balanced that it could become a case study in script classes. Given oddball characters whose fixations and true heart contrast with moments of intense violence, comparisons to the Coen brothers are unavoidable. However, the origins of this black revenge comedy go back even further, adding an asocial twist to classic screwballers where a group of eccentric misfits is balanced out by a single woman who is the most put-together and in touch of the bunch.
Jensen (“Adam’s Apple,” “Men and Chicken”) enlists his usual cast, several of whom have appeared in his previous four films, including Mads Mikkelsen, the group’s most well-known member, who is currently enjoying a year off between this and “Another Round.” For the brief time when cinemas were open in Denmark, box office was expectedly strong, and foreign sales have been burgeoning. The big question now is if distributors around the world would be able to wait until theaters reopen.