Three men, on their way in a sinking balloon over an icy sea, have to get rid of
weight. Based on a majority decision by two of the men, they throw the third
person out of the basket to reduce the weight of the balloon and thus save their
lives.
The victim, who was initially strongly opposed to this solution, manages to cling
to a long line that hangs under the balloon. He refuses to let go despite
strenuous arguments for why he has to sacrifice himself.
This arouses tremendous frustration in the dominant and most cynical of the
two remaining in the balloon. He tries in every way to get rid of the "dead
weight" but ends up in a fatal conflict with his accomplice when the long line
with the victim gets stuck in a discarded and rusty oil platform out at sea. In a
fight, both of the two in the balloon fall out of the basket.
Without the weight of the two men, the balloon quickly rises into the sky with
the third man still hanging from the line.
Directors statement, engelsk
“We have a troubled world with war, climate change and the rise of
dictatorships and autocracies, this made me reflect. With the film Dead Weight, I
wanted to explore and caricature phenomena such as selfishness, lack of
empathy and the ability to see other people's perspectives in this demanding
time of history.”