Director Kristian Levring examines middle-class disenfranchisement in contemporary Copenhagen with this chilling psychological drama about a family man who just can't help but suspect that he's not as happy as he should be. Mikael (Ulrich Thomsen) is a workaholic husband and father who's recently taken some time off work to move his family into his wife's childhood home in the suburbs. He wants to learn how to relax, and it seems like this latest move is a step in the right direction. His wife, Sigrid (Paprika Steen), is a successful executive, their teenage daughter, Selma, seems content with their decision to relocate, and the family is surround by a great support system that includes kindly Frederik (Lars Brygmann) and his girlfriend, Ellen (Stine Stengade) -- so why is it that Mikael is still feeling so strained all of the time? Unable to sleep and constantly wound up, Mikael seizes the opportunity to take part in a drug test for a new antidepressant that Frederik is helping to market. At first the drug seems to have a considerably positive effect on Mikael's outlook, though before long he's isolating himself from family and friends while growing more detached than ever before.
