In fact, Ulrich Larsen himself does not understand why he embarked on the double life of a spy on a mission in North Korea. He lives with his family in the suburbs of Copenhagen and worked as a chef until he took early retirement. And then - North Korea.
"I've always been a completely ordinary man," the Dane says of a case that could be addressed by the United Nations.
However, an ordinary Dane is certainly not suitable for a character in a spy movie, let alone the main character of a documentary about espionage. And that is precisely the case with Ulrich Larsen. Because he really managed to discover the plans and activities of the secret services of North Korea, and to that extent the documentary "Muldvarpen - undercover in Nordkorea" is interesting not only for the television audience.
Because, in a short documentary series by Danish Television, realized with the public services of Norway (NRK), Sweden (SVT) and Great Britain (BBC), it can be seen how the leadership of North Korea is trying in every way to circumvent UN sanctions and how it is ready to deliver drugs and weapons to make money and get oil.
A "friend" of North Korea
For Larsen, it all started almost by accident, out of mere curiosity about that closed country. He too watched the Danish comedy "Red Chapel" which mocks the regime in Pyongyang, written by Mads Brüger, director and this documentary.
After that, the former chef joins the Danish-North Korean friendship society, as he himself said, a rather strange and boring society. But, although normally reserved, he quickly climbs the hierarchy there. He meets with the president of the International Association of Friends of North Korea (KFA), Alejandro Kao de Benos, a Spaniard of noble origin who particularly advocates for the interests of North Korea.
Kao de Benos tells him that he is looking for investors who are willing to invest in North Korea, despite the sanctions against that country. Director Briger decides to include "Mr. James" in the story - of course, a fake investor from Scandinavia - played by Jim Latrash-Quartrup, a former member of the Foreign Legion and a convicted drug dealer.
Larsen becomes a close associate of the Spaniard and travels to North Korea for the first time. He goes deeper and deeper into a secret life that even his wife knows nothing about.
During the ten years that his espionage career would last, he managed to become a significant figure in the KFA, and through the North Korean Ministry of Culture, he got closer and closer to the people at the very top of that country - and its secret service.
Underground drug factory
The highlight was when, together with "Mr. James", he began negotiations with high representatives of North Korea on the purchase of entire armed systems and the production of narcotics. They travel to Uganda, where they were supposed to build an underground narcotics factory, and weapons would then go through that country. An oil trader from Jordan is reportedly also in the game, who is ready to invest millions of dollars.
Despite the great risk, the meetings were recorded with hidden microphones and cameras.
This documentary is partially reminiscent of the Hollywood comedy "The Interview" from 2014, in which an American showman, on the orders of the CIA, should kill Kim Jong Un during an interview. The film enraged official Pyongyang - there were even threats to attack cinemas.
The key difference is: this documentary is not fictional, but shows real meetings and agreements.
Was it clear to Larsen that he was in a dangerous game? "There's no doubt that someone will be very angry there. Because I've lied an incredible amount and resented a lot of people," says Larsen.
Epilogue in film and life
All this did not remain without consequences in real life: Denmark and Sweden instructed their UN ambassadors to inform the UN sanctions commission about what was seen in the film. Because, in the film, it can be seen that North Korea is actively working to circumvent sanctions, and this is a reason for the concern of their governments, Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde and her Danish colleague Jepe Kofod announced this Monday.
"We take the content of this documentary very seriously, as it raises a whole range of extremely problematic issues." The content of the documentary has already been discussed in the European Union, and the Danish chef will be traveling again: this time to the United Nations.
At the end of the documentary, the main character and the director withdraw their hand: "Mr. James" disappeared at the moment when he was supposed to appear with millions. And the mole Larsen was finally able to tell everything to his wife. He also called his noble patron in Spain, who of course cut off all contact with him. Larsen breathed a sigh of relief.
The director finally asked him if he would like to be a spy again. "Not in the same way," he replied, adding, "But never say never."
Bonus video:
