Nico, 1988

NICO, 1988 is filmmaker Susanna Nicchiarelli’s authentically enigmatic chronicling of the iconic singer-songwriter’s final years. Driven by Trine Dyrholm’s (Thomas Vinterberg’s muse in such films as THE COMMUNE and THE CELEBRATION) electrifying performance, NICO, 1988 premiered at the 2017 Venice Film Festival, where it won Best Film in the festival’s Horizons section, and went on to play at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival.

Dyrholm’s portrayal of the aging Nico is a tour de force, interpreting rather than impersonating the famed singer-songwriter approaching 50 and leading a solitary existence in Manchester, far from her glam days as a Warhol superstar and celebrated vocalist for The Velvet Underground. Her life and career on the ropes, Nico’s new manager Richard (John Gordon Sinclair) convinces her to hit the road again and tour Europe to promote her latest album. Struggling with her demons and the consequences of a muddled life, she longs to rebuild a relationship with the son (Sandor Funtek) whose custody she lost long ago. A brave and uncompromising musician, Nico’s is the story of an artist, a mother, and the woman behind the icon.

“Writer/Director Susanna Nicchiarelli and star Trine Dyrholm craft a late-career biopic that acts not only as a portrait of a complex figure, but recognizes the considerable toll of daring not to conform.” – Sarah Ward, Screen International

“Susanna Nicchiarelli, knows just what she’s doing… there’s no false story, and she takes us close to Nico’s tattered charisma… Dyrholm’s performance is a powerhouse of authenticity. Her moroseness is mesmerizing, but she also gives Nico a tense intelligence, and her singing is uncanny.” – Owen Gleiberman, Variety