PUSHER II: Mads Mikkelsen Week at FOMO Cinema
Saturday 18. July at 18:30 - 20:10
FOMO Secret Cinema, Tbilisi
Welcome to RETURN OF THE MADS at FOMO Cinema Tbilisi. The original plan was one week. You had other ideas.
After an overwhelming response to MADSNESS, I'm extending the retrospective with another week of films, exploring the performances, directors and collaborations that helped turn Mikkelsen from Denmark's best-kept secret into one of the defining screen actors of his generation.
He's worked with Nicolas Winding Refn, Thomas Vinterberg, Susanne Bier, Anders Thomas Jensen and some of the biggest directors in international cinema, balancing arthouse cinema with global blockbusters.
This time we're digging a little deeper. We'll revisit some familiar faces, discover a few hidden gems and trace the remarkable second act of a career that's only become more adventurous with time.
PUSHER II
Nicolas Winding Refn | 2004 | Denmark | 1h40m | Danish with English subtitles
If PUSHER introduced audiences to Tonny, PUSHER II transformed him into one of the great tragic figures of modern European crime cinema.
Rather than returning to Frank from the first film, Nicolas Winding Refn shifts his attention to the heavily tattooed side character who spent much of PUSHER shouting, fighting and trying desperately to impress people who barely noticed he existed.
Fresh out of prison and burdened with debts, expectations and a newborn son he never expected to have, Tonny finds himself trapped between two versions of masculinity he can't live up to. He's not ruthless enough for Copenhagen's criminal underworld and not responsible enough for ordinary life. At the centre of it all sits his relationship with his father, a feared gangster whose approval remains permanently out of reach.
What follows is less a crime film than a character study of failure, inheritance and men trying to become something other than the people they were raised to be. The violence remains, but PUSHER II is quieter, sadder and far more emotionally devastating than its predecessor.
The film also marked Mads Mikkelsen's breakthrough as a leading actor. His performance as Tonny remains one of the defining achievements of Danish cinema and laid the foundations for everything that followed, from THE HUNT to ANOTHER ROUND and CASINO ROYALE.
Few crime sequels justify their existence. PUSHER II surpasses the original.
FOOD AND DRINK POLICY: FOMO Cinema Lounge Bar opens 1 hour before the first screening of the day and closes at 02:00, serving a wide selection of beer, wine, cocktails, and non-alcoholic refreshments including coffee and tea, as well as fresh hot popcorn! Outside food is allowed in the bar but not in the cinema. No alcohol from outside allowed. All guests are invited to arrive early and stay late!
LOCATION: FOMO Secret Cinema, Bazari Orbeliani, Tbilisi. A five minute walk from Liberty Square metro.
HOW TO FIND FOMO: Enter Bazari Orbeliani via Atoneli St above Carrefour and take the stairs on your left to Level 1. Signage on the door. You can also check our Instagram story highlights for a video showing exactly how to find us: https://www.instagram.com/s/aGlnaGxpZ2h0OjE3OTMzMTA2Mjk0MDI5MjM1
FOMO Secret Cinema • Bazari Orbeliani, 0105 Tbilisi, Georgia
