The celebrated Danish filmmaker, Tomas Vinterberg, imagines how his nation would cope if the citizens discovered one day that Denmark would be underwater very soon. Families Like Ours is an apocalyptic drama that unfolds when the water level visibly rises in Denmark. The government figured that there was no long-term solution, so instead of investing more money in water containment, they decided it would be more beneficial to redirect their resources into relocating the Danish citizens. The seven-episode series follows a white Danish family and focuses on how they navigate through this trying time. The series is a commentary on how something as drastic as a natural disaster could completely alter the course of one’s life. The privileged/middle-class white families were not spared the horror of being labeled ‘illegal immigrants,’ and making ends meet became a serious challenge.
Spoiler Alert
Why did Lucas’ drawing compel Laura to follow her mother?
When the Danish government officially announced the nationwide evacuation plan, Laura, a teenager about to graduate from high school, decided to move to Paris. Her father, Jacob, an architect, had previously worked there, and upon reconnecting with his previous employer, he was guaranteed a job in Paris. Laura managed to get into the Sorbonne with a scholarship, and she looked forward to her new life in the bustling city. She was all the more excited about Paris because her boyfriend, Elias, agreed to move there with her. While the situation was overwhelming, she and her family successfully came up with a plan, and they did their best to execute it.
Everything was going according to their plan when all of a sudden Laura started to second-guess her decision. Her mother, Fanny, a journalist, couldn’t find employment in Paris, so she decided to move to Romania with the help of the government relocation program. Jacob had offered to help his ex-wife, but Fanny didn’t wish for her to be a burden, considering Jacob already had too much on his plate. Laura couldn’t make peace with the idea that she might not get to meet her mother for years, if not forever. She started to fear for her mother’s life when she came across a sketch drawn by Lucas. Laura worked at a daycare, and over the years she had built an adorable friendship with Lucas, a bright young boy who loved soccer and had quite a temper. Laura had come to realize that Lucas had a gift—he could see the future. Lucas could sense something terrible was about to happen before the evacuation program was announced. He was too young to comprehend his visions, but he was emotionally affected by them. So, when Laura came across a sketch where she was seen riding a sledge and crossing over a body of water to be with her father, and in the background there was someone lying dead, she quickly assumed Lucas must have depicted her mother in the sketch. He was not quite clear if the person lying on the ground was dead or just resting, so Laura assumed the worst. She could not imagine losing her mother, but at the same time she couldn’t make up her mind about leaving behind the life that awaited her in Paris.
Fanny had always been occupied with her career goals, which was presumably why Jacob was granted custody of Laura, so Laura wasn’t surprised when she saw her mother pack all her books but leave behind the cupboard that they used as a height marker when Laura was young. It was only after dropping her mother off at the port that Laura made up her mind to move to Romania with Fanny. She knew that her father would manage without her with his wife and son, but her mother was completely alone, and she felt the urgency to be there with her. She packed her belongings and left home, but on her way to the port, she ran into a protest gathering. She left behind her car and ran as fast as she could to the port, but the ship to Romania had already sailed. Seeing no option at hand, Laura got on a boat with an illegal immigrant that was heading to Poland. She decided to make her way to Romania from there.
Did Laura misinterpret the drawing?
The boat couldn’t make it to Poland, and Laura ended up in Russia. Her phone was taken away, so she failed to stay in touch with her family. Jacob, his wife, Amalie, and their son, Mikkel, managed to make it to Paris. Jacob was yet to receive a work visa, but the company he was supposed to work for provided them with financial aid. Jacob was tense when he didn’t receive any update from his daughter. Later, when he learned that Laura had told one of her friends, Mathilde, that she was traveling to Poland on a boat and planned to cross borders illegally, he lost his calm. He decided to inform the police about Laura’s situation even though his employer had warned him not to, since his work visa was yet to arrive. The company would get in trouble if the police started to investigate. After all, without a legitimate work visa, Jacob and his family were not legally allowed to live in France. But without thinking about the consequences of his actions, Jacob informed the police and got Interpol involved.
After arriving in Russia, Laura contacted Elias and informed him about her plan. Even though he was deeply upset about her abandoning him and choosing to move to Romania, he decided to head to Poland to find her. He was in love with her, and he wasn’t ready to let the borders keep them apart.
Elias’ childlike optimism was shattered when his passport was taken away by cops in Copenhagen. He decided to cross borders on foot and successfully made it to Poland. He was also carrying Laura’s sledge that she used during her childhood days, simply as a sweet gesture. Laura contacted him whenever she met kind strangers who allowed her to use their phones, and they agreed to meet in Stegna. Laura’s journey was far from easy. She had to give all her money to the man in charge of the illegal border crossing, but even then she was not allowed to get on the boat. She walked all the way to Poland, and she luckily didn’t face any trouble while crossing the border. Meanwhile, immediately after making it to Poland, Elias met a man who offered him shelter for the night. His wife was welcoming, and Elias thought it might be a good idea to take some rest. But the next morning he woke up to a commotion. There were men outside the house; one of them claimed to be a policeman and offered to drop Elias off at Stegna. Elias figured that the man didn’t approve of immigrants, especially because Poland was already suffering and the citizens blamed immigrants for the lack of resources. Elias was asked to get out of the car in an isolated area, and he was brutally assaulted. Laura had misinterpreted Lucas’ drawing— it was not Fanny who was wounded and lying on the ground; it was Elias. The man who’d offered to help Lucas was innocent, but his decision to help a stranger backfired.
What happened to Nikolaj and Henrik?
Nikolaj, Jacob’s brother-in-law and a government official, found out about the government’s decision before the general public did. Naturally, he informed his immediate family members about it and advised them to withdraw money from their bank accounts and sell their houses immediately. Nikolaj and his husband, Henrik, sold their properties before the country went berserk. Henrik considered informing his homophobic brother, Peter, about the evacuation, but he decided against it when his brother was aggressive with him again. Henrik always chose to keep his interaction with Peter to a minimum, which is why Henrik didn’t protest much when Peter took over most of their father’s property. After the Danish government announced the evacuation plan, Peter accused Henrik of keeping the information to himself and blamed him for the loss he was facing in his business. Henrik refused to offer Peter any money, so he ended up bringing all the men he owed to Henrik’s doorstep. He had told them that Henrik was his business partner, and if they wanted their money back, they had to beat it out of Henrik. While Henrik didn’t know what to do, Nikolaj pulled out his shotgun and started firing. He only wanted to scare them, and it worked.
During the time when Nikolaj went away for a business trip and Henrik was alone, their house was attacked. Men stormed into their house, and they assaulted and choked Henrik. He somehow managed to flee from the scene, and the next morning he returned to their ransacked house. Thankfully, the mob didn’t find the money that they had saved for their future. Nikolaj returned early from his trip and suggested that they pay Peter, but Henrik refused to give any money to his brother. He knew that there would be no end to his demands. The next night, when a car approached their house, Nikolaj and Henrik stepped out with their shotguns in hand. They started firing when the car didn’t stop, and Henrik unintentionally ended up shooting at the windshield, killing the driver. Nikolaj, being the level-headed one, suggested they drown the car with the driver. They didn’t recognize him, and considering the state of the country, they knew they would not face any repercussions. Later, when they discovered that the man was Danilo’s (their driver) son, Henrik was overcome with guilt. Nikolaj tried to convince him to think of it as self-defense, but when Danilo stopped by their house and told them how he didn’t intend to return to Albania until he found his son, Henrik thought it was unfair to remain silent. Nikolaj tried his best to stop Henrik, but he didn’t listen.
Henrik changed his mind about offering money to Peter when he came across Lucas. Instead of traveling to the UK, where he was selected to join the Liverpool FC Youth, Lucas had stayed back in Denmark. Nikolaj was asked to find a way to reunite him with his mother, who was in Romania. It was then that Henrik met Lucas, and to his surprise, the little boy asked him why he didn’t help his brother. This remark drove Henrik to a state of madness, and he decided to offer help to Peter and then surrender himself to the police. Peter was surprised when he woke up and saw Henrik by his side. He was not doing well, and the sight of Henrik was not particularly pleasant to him. Henrik confessed to Peter that he’d killed Danilo’s son, and he requested Peter to hand over the wedding ring Danilo’s son was wearing to Danilo. He also asked Peter to give the man a few euros from his share so that he could buy the land in Albania, and Henrik was also willing to help Danilo recover his son’s body so that he could bury him. Peter explained that most of the police stations were out of order, so even if he felt guilty, he couldn’t get rid of the feeling by simply surrendering himself. He had to live with it. Peter offered him an olive branch and suggested they move to Norway together. Henrik couldn’t believe his brother, and he explained how traumatizing most of his childhood had been because of him. Peter realized his mistake, and he apologized.
We later learn that Henrik and Nikolaj moved to the UK like they’d planned. They were also fostering Lucas, who changed his mind about moving to Romania thanks to Nikolaj and his rational way of dealing with Lucas’ confusion about his future. Lucas had joined the Liverpool FC Youth Academy, and he was training to become a soccer player just like he intended to. He was in contact with his mother and promised to visit her soon. Nikolaj and Henrik’s dream of building their own family came true with Lucas, and perhaps they’ll go ahead with their adoption plan as well. Henrik learned to live with his mistake, and he did buy Danilo the land in Albania as he’d planned. He knew it was nothing in comparison to the crime he’d committed, but this was the only solution he could come up with.
Did Elias survive?
It had been months since Laura had last heard from Elias. She had reunited with her mother, and they’d moved to Romania in the meanwhile. She got a job at a restaurant, and her mother sold a series of articles to stay afloat, and they were doing quite well given the situation. But Laura couldn’t shrug off the fear of Elias not making it. She repeatedly texted and called him, but he didn’t respond. Laura was devastated when she received a call from Elias’ mother stating that his belongings had been found in Poland and it was assumed that he hadn’t survive. Laura refused to believe it; she was certain that Elias would not rest until they were back together. But the fear started to slowly consume her, and she didn’t know how to cope with the grief.
Laura’s relationship with her mother grew stronger as they started to live together. She noticed that her mother didn’t leave behind the cupboard from her childhood days, underlying that Fanny had always cared for Laura even though she might have not been as expressive. Laura perhaps didn’t regret following her to Romania but at the same time, it’s not too far-fetched to imagine that she was probably blaming herself for what had happened to Elias, and she didn’t know how to live with it. She video called her father, she deeply missed him. They agreed to keep their cameras on when they went to bed that night. They didn’t know when they would get to see each other again. Jacob worked as a janitor, and Amalie got a job as a receptionist at a hotel; their income was barely enough to sustain them in Paris, so buying flight tickets was not even an option. But they tried to keep it together, because giving up after coming this far was not something they could consider.
One day, out of the blue, when Laura received a text from Elias, she was completely shocked. She called him, and he explained that he was alive after being in a coma for a month. He was still at a rehabilitation center in Poland, and he couldn’t contact anyone because he had trouble with his speech. He was hopeful that one day he would be able to walk again. Laura wanted to meet him, but he was not ready to face her. After over three weeks of phone conversation, Laura decided to travel to Finland. Her friend, Mathilde, was getting married there, and she knew Elias was also living in Finland. She refused to move ahead without closure, and this was the only option she had. She got a visitor’s visa and finally arrived at Mathilde’s wedding. Her friend warned her that Elias might not show up because he was too embarrassed to meet Laura, but she was still hopeful.
Did Laura and Elias rekindle their romance?
At the end of Families Like Ours, Elias arrived at the wedding, in a wheelchair, as the best man. When his eyes met Laura’s, he quickly looked away. He ignored her throughout the wedding and even at the afterparty, but Laura refused to return home with her regrets. She walked up to him, but he looked away. He added that he was not ready to have a conversation yet. She confessed that she missed him and he admitted that he missed her as well, but he was not sure if they should be together again. She wanted him to ask her to stay, but he didn’t wish for her to regret her decision. It was evident that they cared deeply about each other; they didn’t know how to make it work in the future. Elias’ life had drastically changed; he was no longer the happy-go-lucky guy he used to be. He had seen violence up close, and given his condition, he was afraid that he would limit Laura. Laura, too, had been through a life-altering journey, but she was not ready to give up on the possibility of being with her lover. While we don’t know what the future holds for the couple, the ending of Families Like Ours hinted that the lovers didn’t wish for the night to come to an end. Their circumstances had changed, their objectives in life had altered, but they felt their feelings for one another remained the same. At the end of the series, we see that the water level had risen as was predicted in Denmark, and the streets that once bustled with people were now empty. The fear that an entire country could be completely erased and forgotten was more real than ever before.
