''The Red Horses'', ( da, De Røde Heste), is a 1950 Danish romantic drama directed by

Alice O'Fredericks Alice O'Fredericks (born Mitzi Otha Alice Frederiksen; 8 September 1899 – 18 February 1968) was a Danish actress, screenwriter, and film director. She is best known for directing the series of '' Far til Fire'' (''Father of Four'') comedi ...

and

Jon Iversen Jon Iversen (, 1 December 1889 – 17 August 1964) was a Danish stage and film actor and film director. Selected filmography *'' Blind Justice'' (1916) *''Hotel Paradis'' - 1931 *'' Week-End'' - 1935 *'' Frøken Møllers jubilæum'' - 1937 ...

, based on the popular novel by

Morten Korch Morten Luther Gudmund Korch (1876–1954) was a Danish writer who wrote populist stories and romances about rural Denmark. During his lifetime, he was the most widely read author in Denmark. Korch wrote 123 novels, several of which were made ...

. The film stars

Poul Reichhardt Poul David Reichhardt (2 February 1913 – 31 October 1985) was a Danish actor, well known for his roles in Danish 1940s/1950s comedies. Later on, he also played more serious and varied roles; he has also starred in '' Huset på Christians ...

and Tove Maës as young newlyweds who try to save an old family farm by winning a horse race. ''The Red Horses'' is the most watched Danish film of all time.

Plot

Ole Offor (Poul Reichhardt) a young graduate from agricultural college, returns home to discover that rumors about his fiancé (Lily Broberg) are true—she has been cheating on him. Ole rejects her thin denials and decides to move to Canada to start a new life. In the meantime, Ole's father, Hans (Johannes Meyer), meets with an old childhood friend, Munk (Ejner Federspiel), who is seriously ill. Munk owns a beautiful old stud farm called Enekaer, but he has left it nearly bankrupt. Hans promises Munk that he will help. Hans asks Ole to become the manager of Enekaer and see if it can be saved. Munk purchased some fine ponies of a red breed which he had hoped could be trained as winning trotters and save the farm. However, his bad heart left him bed-ridden. Munk's second wife, Zita (Else Jarlbak) has been having an affair with the vicious horse trainer, Willers (Jørn Jeppesen). When Munk discovers this, he sues for divorce, but Willers now owns outstanding notes on the farm. Ole arrives and meets Munk's daughter, Bente (Tove Maës). The daughter from Munk's first marriage, Bente is sweet woman with a slightly crippled leg from a horse riding accident. Ole quickly becomes taken with Bente. Willers is paid off by Ole and his father and told to disappear. Munk, on his death bed, tells Ole and Bente that his last wish is for them to marry. Enekaer has one fine stallion named Junker that Munk hoped could win the 15,000 Kroner prize at the trotting derby. But Willers had ruined Junker's nerves. Ole and Bente care for Junker and he regains strength and speed. Ole falls in love with Bente and proposes. They marry but the marriage is uneasy because Bente feels that Ole married her out of charity. One day Zita Munk returns but Ole and Bente refuse her admittance to Enekaer. They are called into court because Zita possesses Munk life insurance which gives her financial control of Enekaer. The court gives Ole and Bente a brief time to raise the money or give up the farm. They are despondent, but after all they have been through, Bente finally has realized that Ole truly loves her. On Derby day, Ole decides to race Junker himself. Everyone at Enekaer bets all of their money on Ole and Junker. Ole races to victory and in happiness, Ole and Bente return to Enekaer.

Cast

* Johannes Meyer as Hans Offor *

as Ole Offor * Pia Ahnfelt-Rønne as Sara Offor *

Peter Malberg Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter {{expand list, date=August 2020 Peter is a common name. As a given name, it is generally derived from Peter the Apostle, born Simon, whom Jesus renamed "Peter" after he declared that Jesu ...

as Mikkel Pind * Lily Broberg as Henriette *

Ejner Federspiel Ejner Federspiel (12 August 1896 – 21 November 1981) was a Danish film actor. He appeared in 58 films between 1934 and 1981. He was married to Gunver Fønss and his daughter was actress Birgitte Federspiel. Partial filmography * ''Hr. ...

as Anders Munk * Tove Maës as Bente Munk *

Maria Garland Maria Garland (16 May 1889 – 26 October 1967) was a Danish stage and film actress. Selected filmography *'' Verdensgiften'' - 1914 *'' Professor Petersens Plejebørn'' - 1924 *'' En kæreste for meget'' - 1924 *'' Kraft og skønhed'' ...

as Konstance Munk *

Else Jarlbak Else Jarlbak (8 August 1911 – 16 February 1963) was a Danish film actress. She appeared in 35 films between 1934 and 1961. She was born in Copenhagen, Denmark and died in Denmark. Filmography * '' Lynet'' (1934) * '' De bør forelske dem ...

as Zita Munk * Jørn Jeppesen as Stefan Willers * Kai Lind as Jørgen Senille * Mette Bjerre as Dorthe Senille * Ib Conradi as Peter Snille * Christen Møller as Dr. Sørenen *

Knud Hallest Knud Hallest (12 May 1909 – 4 September 1991) was a Danish film actor. He appeared in 38 films between 1935 and 1974. He was born in Copenhagen, Denmark and died in Denmark. Filmography * ''Pigen og drømmeslottet'' (1974) * '' Skygger' ...

as Sagfører Nielsen

Reaction

Although his novels were popular in the 1930s,

had been unsuccessful in having his depictions of rural life filmed at

Nordisk Film Nordisk Film A/S (lit. "Nordic Film") is a Danish entertainment company established in 1906 in Copenhagen by filmmaker Ole Olsen. It is the fourth-oldest film studio in the world behind the Gaumont Film Company, Pathé, and Titanus ...

, the largest film studio in Denmark. Still available in the period after World War II, Korch's stories became a gold mine for the smaller ASA Film Company. ''The Red Horses'' was seen by more than 2.3 million people and is considered the most popular Danish film ever. It was quickly followed by 16 more films of Korch stories, all filmed at ASA and directed by O'Fredericks.

Remakes

The film was made in Swedish in 1954 '' The Red Horses'' (''De Röda hästarna''). In 1968, it was remade in Denmark by ASA Film, directed by

Annelise Meineche Anneliese (, ) is a female given name of either German, Dutch or Nordic origin. It is a compound form of "Anna" and "Liese", a short form of " Elisabeth". It may refer to: * Anneliese Bauer, East German slalom canoer who competed in the late 195 ...

, and again starred

, but in the role of the father, Hans Offor. The movie was spoofed with the 1987 comedy ''Kampen om den røde ko'' (''Fight Over the Red Cow'').

References

External links

IMDb
Den Danske Film Database (In Danish)
De Røde Heste
Det Danske Filminstitut (In Danish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Red Horses, The 1950s Danish-language films 1950 films Films directed by Alice O'Fredericks Films directed by Jon Iversen ASA Filmudlejning films Films based on Danish novels Danish horse racing films Danish black-and-white films Danish romantic drama films 1950 romantic drama films