Danish comedy duo Casper Christensen and Frank Hvam would like you to know they are not pedophiles. Not that accusations of creative indecency would stop them from toying with the line of good taste, as they do to hilarious effect in the R-rated Danish sex comedy Klown. The Curb Your Enthusiasm-style road trip comedy which they wrote and co-star in, happens to be the funniest, most outrageous film of the year, and it has already been acquired for American remake by Todd Phillips and Danny McBride.
Klown debuted in New York, Los Angeles, and Austin over the weekend, stirring up a decent opening as it looks to expand to 13 additional markets in the coming weeks. Back home in Denmark, it’s already made $12.3 million; nearly 20 percent of the population reportedly watched it upon release in 2010. That’s a fantastic start for a buddy comedy chock full of explicit sexual gags, nudity, child endangerment and wanton irresponsibility galore — a NSFW comedy of discomfort.
After floating down the the Guadalupe River outside of Austin, Texas last month for The Alamo Drafthouse’s Rolling Roadshow screening series, Christensen and Hvam spoke with Movieline about the planned American remake, their scripting process, and their tricks for how — and when — to push the envelope.
The duo also discuss cinematic enfant terrible Lars Von Trier — his Zentropa outfit co-produced Klown — and compare his Nazi-referencing Cannes controversy to “a stand-up comedian at an open mic”
You two had a successful run with Klown the TV show, but at what point did you crack the right way to make it into a film?
Casper Christensen: We did six seasons, and Frank and I wrote all the episodes. It’s a lot of work. It’s a joyride, it’s a lot of fun, but sometimes in life you’ve got to just come up for fresh air. So after six seasons we just took a break from each other. Frank went on a stand-up comedy tour. I did television, and it felt good just to let go of the Klown universe for a while. But we always had ambitions to write a movie. We got together and said, ‘Let’s write this movie.’ I wanted to get back into Klown because the character was so much fun to act, and we knew the characters so well.
Frank Hvam: It was a good idea. I have no regrets about that movie.
CC: But we started out bouncing around ideas for a completely different movie before we did this one.
How different was that concept?
FH: It’s always based on some buddy stuff, because that’s our relationship. We are friends in real life. We have this comic dynamic that we know, and we use that.
CC: We talked about setting it during the second World War.
FH: Because we would probably fail totally in a war situation.
CC: We talked a lot about war.
FH: On which side would we be? [Laughs]
CC: How would we be if we were soldiers? Would we still be friends? Who would really be the hero between the two of us?
FH: Every time we see a war movie in Denmark it’s about Danish heroes, and we would like to tell a story about Danish assholes.
CC: During the second World War.
Maybe you can use that in a Klown follow-up. Do you already have an idea in mind for your next movie?
CC: Oh, we have a plan! We’re going to start writing in January. It might be a Klown movie, but it might be something completely different.
One of things Klown the film does well is give freshness to a concept that isn’t necessarily unique – the road trip set-up, for example. If you were to give comedy writing tips based on your experience writing Klown, where would you start?
CC: You’ve got to have a good story, a story that means something to yourself. Fatherhood is interesting for Frank and I. We’re both fathers [and have] spent a lot of time talking about it. We live a different life than most people in Denmark, so of course we talk about things like, what kind of father figure are we? That was most important for us: We had a good story, and we had something we wanted to talk about.
CC: Once a story is in place, you’ve got to do good comedy on top of it. You’ve just got to refresh your thoughts — I’ve never seen this, this might be fun — and just believe in it. We weren’t trying to please anybody when we made the movie. We’re not going to go, ‘People might like canoeing.’ Frank and I liked the concept of canoeing, that’s why we did it.
FH: Write for yourself. That’s a very important thing.
Nudity, especially involving male genitalia, is used often for shock value. How strategic do you have to be in using it at just the right moment, and for maximum effect?
CC: When we wrote it we wanted to make sure one of the biggest laughs was going to be at the end of the movie, because it seemed downhill from there.
FH: We also had to make sure it didn’t ruin the story. If we have something explosive and we can’t get on the horse again – our story horse – then it wasn’t worth it.
CC: That’s why we don’t show the picture right after we take the picture. We put it late in the movie but early enough that you kind of have forgotten we took the picture. That’s when people go, ‘Oh!’ when Frank goes, “I’ve got Casper’s phone right here.” They’re suddenly reminded.
FH: We were discussing having Bo in the bed having a pearl necklace instead of Frank’s mother in law. That would have been fun, but it would have destroyed the story because it would have been impossible for Frank and Bo to get on that canoe trip after that.
CC: And what would top it? What would top ejaculating on a child’s face? It’s impossible.
FH: Then it’s a skit.
CC: No, then it’s illegal!
Do you think American audiences will be more shocked than Danish audiences by how far Klown goes in the pursuit of humor?
FH: It was a shocking movie at home, too.
CC: Let’s not kid ourselves – it’s way too much, even in Denmark.
Denmark doesn’t just have the coolest audience in the world, then?
CC: Oh, no – that’s why you laugh, because it’s too much.
FH: It’s ok that people are a little bit shocked. Otherwise we wouldn’t have a movie!
CC: Some scenes get more laughs over here, though; the homosexual themes are much more taboo.
FH: The home robbery scene is also a little more [taboo] because running away from a child during a robbery here in the U.S. is a death scene — in Denmark it’s bad, but it’s not that bad because the robbers are probably not armed.
Thieves are nicer back home?
CC: They’re still thieves! Don’t kid yourself. It’s dangerous, but not that many people have guns so it’s not that dangerous. There’s also a point when Frank is teaching Bo to swim and there’s a beautiful shot of the two characters, the lake is in front of them and the sun is going down, they’re both drying themselves off, and Frank goes, “Let me see that penis... it’s not that small.” It’s funny but it’s a beautiful scene, it’s a loving scene – it’s got feelings in it! In Denmark people laughed, they giggled, but over here it’s like [guffaws] they LAUGH. A grown man looking at a boy’s penis! But in Denmark it’s a beautiful thing.
Why bring Klown to Zentropa? Was Lars Von Trier's involvement part of the appeal?
FH: He wasn’t that much involved, but we came to Zentropa because of Lars von Trier. We wanted to get some of the best film workers on our project, and we wanted to get close to Lars because he’s a super cool guy. He involved himself in a little bit of the editing at the start. He wrote an episode. He acted in an episode, and he is good at forcing us to push the envelope. He really wants things to go wild, and if you’re close to Lars you just want to impress him.
He's cultivated quite the reputation for himself, and not just through films.
CC: Once you get to know him he’s a good guy! He’s got a good sense of humor. He’s a little bit crazy – but in a good way. I’ve been to his house having dinner with his children and my children and it’s all normal. But then suddenly Lars picks up a rifle at the dinner party, stuff like that. Sometimes taking his shirt off during dinner. He wants to see what happens now – what if I did this? And that’s interesting to be around.
Do you think his detractors took his Cannes comments a little too seriously?
FH: We were surprised. We couldn’t see that he’d made any mistake at that press conference. He was just a comedian in an open mic situation –
CC: And somebody misunderstood his joke.
Lars von Trier as stand-up comedian – sounds about right.
CC: That’s what he is! He’s trying out material.
FH: We have tried that too. People sometimes are not offended in their heart, but they can use a matter to promote their own cause, and then they start a war just to show who they are.
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Has something similar happened to you?
FH: [Groans] Yes. We had an episode where Frank crawls into a bathtub with a 10-year-old girl. That was a difficult episode to make. And actually it was motivated! Frank did it to show Mia how wrong it was, because she had been in a shower with her 11-year-old nephew, and Frank was furious about it. He said it was inappropriate. But Mia said, “It’s a natural thing to do, we have known each other since he was a baby!”
CC: And Frank goes, “No, that child is too old to be in the shower with a grown woman.” They get into a big fight and Frank tries to prove that she’s wrong by jumping into the bath with a 10-year-old girl.
FH: At that time there was a child doctor who tried to sell her own shitty stuff…
CC: The expert doctor who writes a blog on the Internet every week and wants to make a name for herself. Suddenly we were pedophilia beasts who should be thrown out of the country.
FH: And at the same time she’s trying to sell her own books.
You guys don’t seem like pedophiles…
CC: We’re not! Write that!
FH: Could that be the headline?
What’s the secret behind your partnership? Why do you two get along so well, and what was the spark that got you two working together creatively?
CC: His ambition and hard work. If you meet somebody who’s just as ambitious as yourself and wants to work as hard as you want to and keeps working, that’s inspiring because you push each other to new levels.
Is it like a marriage?
FH: It is – like an old, old, old marriage.
CC: I think it’s better than a marriage, and I’ve been divorced a few times. This is much better. It’s a lot easier.
FH: It is, because we can stay away from each other for a couple of months without even calling.
CC: I can see other women. [Laughs]
Some have compared Klown’s style to Curb Your Enthusiasm – what influenced the aesthetic?
FH: We were inspired by The Office and Curb Your Enthusiasm, that’s for sure.
CC: The Odd Couple – the title song is similar. I really liked Jacques Tati’s Mon Uncle, and the title song is almost that. We keep getting inspiration from great comedians around the world. If you don’t get inspired by good work, you’re an idiot. You’ve got to look at the best and think, I want to try to be as good as them. And again, we had just did six seasons of a traditional sitcom. It seems like globally the fashion of comedies tend to go from Friends and Frasier being so popular that you want a comedy to sound different. I think that’s why Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Office and Klown came about around the same time. We’ve heard comedy sound so much like this, we want to approach it in a different way. I just read that Ricky Gervais’ idea for The Office was not going to be in an office; it was going to be like Klown, playing himself, walking around getting in trouble… it seems like that was just the new thing to do.
How much interaction have you had with the Todd Phillips-Danny McBride remake of Klown?
CC: I had a few meetings with Danny McBride about it. We met up before Warner bought the remake. He just liked the movie and we got to talking. Then I had a meeting the same day with Green Hat, with Todd Phillips, and by coincidence they came by the movie and had seen it, and we were talking back and forth about how much they liked it. I think it’s in the same family of comedy.
Do you have an idea of how faithfully they’ll adapt their version?
FH: No – it’s totally up to them.
CC: They’re going to change stuff, but we don’t know how much. We don’t care! As long as it’s good. This movie is ours. We’ve done it. Go ahead, have your fun with it.
Which character would Danny McBride actually play? I could see him going Frank or Casper.
CC: That’s what he said, that he hadn’t decided yet. It depends on the script and who’s going to play the other character.
Do either of you have plans to embark on a Hollywood career now?
FH: Not really, from my point of view.
CC: I’d like to work with Frank, maybe 2-3 months a year and we come up with something. The rest of the year I’ve got to find somebody else to work with, so it might as well be here!
Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons, recently said that he’d discovered Klown the series…
CC: He showed up at the screening in Los Angeles!
FH: We didn’t want to brag about it, but it was big for us.
CC: We were really surprised. He showed up, and said, “I can’t wait to see the movie!” Then he went, “I’ve seen the television show,” which surprised me. The effort you go through to find that show, and then buy it on Amazon and wait for it to ship… we were proud.
Any chance of working in a cameo for yourselves into the remake?
CC: I told Danny McBride that we wanted in. We’ve got to be in that movie. Just a small part. [Pause] Let’s see what happens with the script. Let’s see if they’re going to do it. But I think we’re probably going to have a walk-on in that movie.
What about in the next Von Trier movie?
CC: I did The Boss of It All, and you know what? We shot for three months and I don’t have any education at all, and he was working with some of the best actors. Every morning he’d go, “Casper, you’re the worst actor I’ve ever worked with.” For three months! The first scene we did, we shot the scene, and Lars goes, “Alright – Casper, can you take it down a little bit, the acting?” I go, “Yeah, how much?” “About 99 percent.” You’ve got to know that he’s fun to be around. That’s just his way of getting through the day. I’ve done it, I’ve tried it, I’ve been yelled at for three months… I’m in a von Trier movie, that’s it!
Klown is in limited release and on VOD now, and expands this Friday.