Cold Case Hammarskjöld

— It’s hard to describe “Cold Case Hammarskjöld,” a quirky look at the 1961 crash of a plane carrying U.N. Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld to a ceasefire negotiation in the Congo, and the conspiracy theories that surround the event. A clever format adds humor to a documentary that moves from the investigation of a cold case to something much more sinister. Mads Brügger, the film’s investigator, acts as the ringmaster, juggling theories and lines of inquiry while the audience, though intrigued, suspects the theories are just that, unproven and unlikely conspiracy pap. When one of the theories appears to have a basis, suggesting the crash was, in fact, not an accident, Brügger lets the facts add up, making a believable case for an alarming plot to murder Hammarskjöld. It’s hard not to be sucked into the intrigue and to consider the veracity of the claims made, and to worry a little that, even if the conspiracy theory isn’t true, it is plausible. It’s an intriguing film, but I tend to favor documentaries that are under 2 hours, and this one could have been even better with a bit of judicious editing. (Shown at True/False Film Fest 2019.)

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[2019. 128 min. Written and directed by Mads Brügger. With Mads Brügger, Göran Björkdahl, Neddy Banda, and Jan Beuckels.]
https://www.indiewire.com/2019/01/cold-case-hammarskjold-review-sundance-1202039570/