The Marco Effect (2021) User Reviews

This could have been so much better

[Lellie1978 · 4/10 · 18 May 2021]

I made the mistake to rewatch the older ones in this series leading up to the premiere of the newest installment, only to confirm how much better the old ones are, and how boring and disappointing this new one is.

They should have made it with the old cast that we have come to love and associate with this series, or have not made it at all........well, at least make it as an individual movie with no relations to the others.

I remember when my friend asked me 2/3 into this movie "what is it about, is there a story/plot here?", and I couldn't agree more.

Long and slow paced "story" with plot holes and then a rapid ending out of nowhere with the audience left with plenty to desire.

I'm really good at lowering my expectations, but this one didn't deliver at all.

Not good

[AminaHannibal · 4/10 · 25 December 2021]

I miss the other actors even though I like Ulrich Tomsen, but the other Morck was better in the role. Zaki Youssef doesn't slightly compare to Fares Fares in the role of Hafez, my favourite charachter of the books and the movies.

If I had not read the book, I would not have understood anything, and again, they managed to lose me somewhere with an obscure and unspoken plot.

This movie is very low quality compared to the previous ones.

Dull and bland

[michael_d_moller · 3/10 · 27 May 2021]

Saw the first films with Nikolaj-Lie Kaas as inspector Mørck and Fares Fares as Assad.

It could work with Mørck (Played by Ulrich Thomsen) being rude, having no empathy and hellbound on solving the case no matter whos toes he treads upon. But when the rest of the crew around him acts more or less in the same fashion it simply gets boring and uninteresting. Where Assad were much more involved, and a individual character in the first films, he is reduced to a weak voice in the background and a boring sidekick.

Rosa is also tuned dowfrom a strong and independent woman in the first films, to an uninteresting and forgettable supporting role.

The plot is obvius and you have to struggle not to doze off while you see it.

If you have not seen the first films, go check them out and give this one a wide berth.

Oh no...I want my money back..

[pramodyamadurangaserf · 17 May 2022]

Previous 4 movies are masterpieces. What happen to this movie. I was really disappointed. Remake this please. Worst movie of Department Q movie series.

Okay but hollow

[nickpedersen · 6/10 · 3 August 2021]

One thing is that all the actors has been changed, but they still carry the same names. That will make anyone compare... Another thing is that the other stories in the series are quite gruesome.

This story falls flat, and there is not anything gruesome to be told!

It feels like water, where the other movies in the series feels like whiskey.

It should have been a movie on its own. This will never be a part of the other movies in the series.

Recasting ruined the franchise!!

[andreasbuch-15546 · 1/10 · 2 June 2022]

They completely ruined the franchise with this recasting. So sad, was the most promising Danish movie franchise we've seen I a long time.

This is what happens when authors start to take control of movie sets!!!

The right man on the bridge

[peterdahl · 7/10 · 9 October 2021]

I like Nikolaj Lie Kaas a lot and he is really good in many roles. But he was miscast as Carl Mørk.

Ulrik Thomsen is a much better cast when I think back to the pictures I have formed when I have read Jussi's books.

As I remember the book, it was also somewhat loose in the background of the story.

I do not understand the low rating that The Marco Effect gets and give it 7 stars.

Its bad - really really bad

[mariaromlucas · 3/10 · 29 May 2021]

If you've read the book and know the characters - this film you just spend two hours seeing has no comparison. I know that every one says that when they compare the book and the movie.

The plot is thin, the characters are one sided and with no depth, the boy who's playing Marco is filmed from either the left side or right side - and makes you think, : How can this boy be so important, when he's never in a full frame ?

And full frames we see a lot of with Carl Morch, the main character. Way to many of him talking to him self. When you have such a good actor like Ulrik Thomsen you don't need to say what you think, his mimic tells it all.

I don't mind it being so dark, it's Nordic Noir, but it's just a very bad movie with so many details not being correct or things not put into the right perspective.

It's bad - it's so so bad ... sadly !

Le moins bon

[tcochois · 6/10 · 13 January 2022]

Le moins bon des films "Département V". En grande partie en raison de la petite performance des acteurs de cet opus. Manque également, l'humour à froid des précédents ....

Better than expected

[petermv74 · 8/10 · 26 September 2021]

After reading some bad reviews and the poor rating, I was pretty curious if this movie really was that bad.

I knew in advance that I liked the casting of Ulrich Thomsen who I was very satisfied with.

Of course, I had to get used to the new cast and the film's slightly different style compared to its predecessors.

But I actually really liked the film, which portrayed the complicated story well and kept to the mood of the book rather well. I thought this movie is more true to the book than its predecessors.

I think the bad rating and bad reviews are due to people having a hard time with change.

If this film had been the first in the series, it would have received a better rating and better reviews.

This is the REAL Carl Mørch...

[hansi555 · 7/10 · 27 March 2022]

If you have read the books, you will approve of Ulrich Thomsen. Unfortunately his sidekick Assad, is not the brilliant Faris from the previous movies so some dynamic is lost.

Settings and filming techniques/effects could be better, but.story unfolds nicely and the overall the film is quite good.

But Rose is not a policeman, just a secretary meaning without gun...this is a clear and elogic mistake.

Boring

[nathaliegeertsma · 3/10 · 17 May 2021]

I was expecting way too much from this movie and it didn't live up to any of my expectations.

The new cast is boring, dull and flat... We never get a real connection and the plotline could've been explained and solved in about half an hour.

What a disappointment.

Very very boring.

[livrw · 2/10 · 25 April 2022]

Marco effekten is very boring and dull compared to the other movies in the serie. They made a terrible choice by changing the actors. Asaad and Carl aren't a good match in the movie and their partnership doesn't work at all. We all know how Carl is as a character. He's a bit strange, weird and bad at communicating and Nikolaj Lie Kaas played that of well. Ulrich Thomson version of Carl is so off, it's like watching a movie that has nothing to do with the rest of the serie "afdeling Q". It almost uncomfortable to watch how he is. He is unpleasant and an unprofessional criminal detective. I almost couldn't watch the movie, because it was so bad and boring.

Hospital Hang Ups

[jeroduptown · 6/10 · 25 May 2022]

Marco's the kid the finds a dead body and uncovers a massive sham of fundraising for hospitals that goes to crooks. Carl is the gritty cop that is relentless in protecting the boy and finding the source.

We've lost a treasure

[nina-89894 · 3/10 · 18 May 2021]

It is sad to see how such amazing movies could be distroyed and lost forever. I'm so sad.

Okayish nordic noir

[feliackermann · 6/10 · 23 March 2022]

Yesterday I saw it as art of a sneak preview in Germany. That's why I had no expectations at all. Having not seen the other movies I can not really compare the plot or the cast, but this one partially worked for me. I really loved the dark and cold atmosphere typically for nordic noir movies. It was a little long at all - in my opinion they should have reduced the playtime to 80-90 minutes and took off a bit of the mid-part while extending the end to have more time for all the conclusions. It had no super-original plot, but even the open questions of a standard-crime-plot were not well answered in the end and some logical holes remain open as the end credits appear on screen.

All in all it was an enjoyable evening at the cinema without any great surprises - neither the good ones nor the bad ones.

Weak script held together by plot holes and unlikely coincidences

[RipRapRob · 2/10 · 29 May 2021]

Such a huge disappointment.

First part was basically (too-) close-ups and shaky camera.

From there it just got too predictable (major developments you could see coming a mile away), too unlikely (everybody at the right/wrong place at the right/wrong time, depending on what was needed to get to the next predictable scene) and just comical (I actually had to laugh at the absurdity at one point).

Had I not been in the Cinema for the first time in over a year, and with friends, I would likely had walked out.

I'm so disapointed

[maria-15942 · 2/10 · 18 May 2021]

A lot of focus on very small details. Storyline very narrow. Still missing answers on several issues.

Loved it

[u_imdb-10 · 9/10 · 25 May 2021]

The best one so far. More real. Love the new cast. Not that I didn't mind the old cast. Can't wait for the rest of the films.

Not close to the first 4 in the series

[fck_ever · 2/10 · 9 June 2021]

I am a huge fan of the first 4 movies and was looking forward to this one. Unfortunately it was not close to the standard of the previous movies. Dull plot, bad acting and weird moments, like continously speaking danish to a czech kid. Sad!

Awful. Should change the name from "Department Q" to "Department Chew".

[mshavzin · 1/10 · 29 March 2022]

I absolutely hate hate hate this Carl, and in fact everyone in the cast. They were all just gross. The other version cast perfectly all of the roles. I especially hated Detective that chewed. First seeds, then nicotine gum, then chewed other stuff. This group is impossible to care about. Marco the kid is impossible to care about. The general thing I couldn't deal with is the gross way carl kept eating seeds. I just wanted to scream for him to stop. It was disgusting. Why couldn't he go back to smoking. That was so much less absurd. I really didn't like the kid Marco. Not sure where he came from, but if I was Norwegian, I would hope he went back there. What a nasty little character. In the end I just fell asleep. Something about charity funds going missing, Totally obvious plot...if you would even call it a plot. But when you dont have a mystery, and can't care about a single character, what do you have left? A nap.

Not worth the time

[riis-65764 · 2/10 · 3 June 2021]

That's an hour and a half I will never get back. Ulrik thomsen and the co-cast is trying to make it work, but it just don't work. It's so boring and a waste of time.

Very bad

[Bammer_11 · 1/10 · 26 August 2022]

I like the other movies, but this one was so boring.

Very weak script, and the actors, did not make the movie better, i don´t understand why they change them, because the old actors was doing a far better job, it took me 4 days to finish the movie, so glad that i did´nt spend money to see this in the cinema, they just lost a big fan of the other movies i´m not going to see anymore of them very sadly.

Carl Mørck was much better with Nikolaj-Lie Kaas The same with Assad played by Fares Fares and Rosa what a disappointment i think they should just cancel the last movies!

It is just a waist of time.

TAUNT & SIMPLY DIVINE!

[ajordoyne · 10/10 · 5 January 2023]

I'm watching the "The Marco Effect" now. I paused it 1/2 way into the film to specifically come to IMDB for more info/data because I am shocked at just how good this production, direction, acting, editing, camera, dialogue is!! I have not reviewed a film in over a decade.

I knew nothing about this film. Took a chance and am utterly gobsmacked at how clean, smart, authentic it is. Everything is coordinated, believable. The scenes are paced, timed and nothing is wasted. And the acting is SUPERB!

I could not and can not believe the low ratings, reviews found here.

They are not appropriate. Someone associated or connected with this Film must have some unfortunate enemies or some competitor must be trying to betray this work!?! Or more likely - has profound envy!

I took the time to register an account and write this review, in part and in an effort to correct, in my humble yet refined view, the injustice of the low ratings found here. But mainly I came here to praise this film and the entire artistic, professional efforts behind the compilation of it. I watch 10 films per week. None of them are blockbusters, top 40, mainstream, sequels, etc. I am extremely nuanced, particular, detailed. This is a SUPERB FILM!

Am i glad

[marzy-83675 · 1/10 · 13 August 2021]

That i didn't spend money to watch this in the Movies... They completely destroyed the franchise by replacing the two main characters, which is sad.

This is what happens when book authors, try to interfere with the people who know what they're doing.