The Olsen Gang’s Last Trick 1998

After seventeen years, Egon Olsen is placed at the Institute for Theoretical Crime, a psychiatric facility that houses incurably criminal minds. He had recently left the institution to take part in a TV talk show, a moment that rekindles the past for two men who once rode with him. Benny Frandsen and Kjeld Jensen—both with long histories of crime in their wake—see the broadcast and instantly decide to track Egon down, hoping to mix old skills with new opportunities.

Outside the TV studio, Egon finds himself in a moment of comic discomfort, momentarily needing a toilet, and that slip of fate becomes the catalyst for a reunion. He encounters Benny, and together they resolve to locate Kjeld at a nursing home, where the old plans and grudges can be revisited with the same certainty as they once had. Kjeld, for his part, has a life altered by time and tragedy; he sits in a wheelchair and lives in a nursing home after Yvonne’s death in 1987, but his connection to the past remains intact. In Kjeld’s world, a new thread appears: Ruth, a woman Kjeld has become involved with, and who he hoped to share a future with by purchasing a Málaga apartment. Ruth is not merely a backdrop to Kjeld’s longing—she becomes entangled in the gang’s unfolding schemes, a factor that will shape the crew’s choices in the days ahead.

Amid the shock of old ties being rekindled, Egon reveals a renewed plan that has been fermenting during his long stay in psychiatry. He has crafted numerous schemes over the years, plans that his caretaker superintendent has repeatedly confiscated and stored away in a safe. Now he aims for something much larger: a calculated heist intended to seize the English crown jewels. This is not just about money. It’s Egon’s way of proving that his mind can still outthink systems and institutions, and it’s a gambit that places the Olsen gang squarely back in the ring.

Yet a new obstacle enters the orbit of their plans. The department head Hallandsen from the Ministry of Justice becomes aware of Egon’s televised presence and the renewed alertness around the old gang. Hallandsen sees an opportunity to exploit Egon’s notoriety to obtain the Wandenberg documents—a suitcase full of tightly guarded papers that reveal intricate scandals from past decades. If those documents ever see the light, the world as they know it could unravel. An initial attempt by Hallandsen, aided by two ministry officers, to steal these documents from the Foreign Affairs archive fails. The broadcast has stirred memories of Egon, and Hallandsen decides to act more aggressively. He directs expedition secretary Holm-Hansen to track Egon down, while Holm-Hansen recruits a reluctantly retired detective assistant named Jensen to assist; Jensen has waited 17 years for a chance to contribute again, delayed by a computer error that kept him on the sidelines until now.

Back at the Institute, Egon’s compulsions push him toward what he sees as the ultimate heist: breaking into the cabinet that holds his own long-guarded plans. The headmaster intervenes, eager to re-lock Egon away, but Holm-Hansen intervenes in the nick of time, pushing Egon forward and allowing Kjeld and Benny to slip away with their memories and the fragile hope of a new tomorrow. The plan shifts from mere escape to a targeted theft: Hallandsen tasks Egon with stealing the Wandenberg documents, promising a reward for cooperation. With Hallandsen’s two office allies providing assistance, Egon makes off with the documents in a matter of minutes, proving that his mind remains razor-sharp even after years of confinement. But the triumph is not complete. Instead of a celebratory payoff, Egon is imprisoned in a dungeon within the Ministry of Justice, where he comes under assault from Bøffen and his associate Alf. Kjeld and Benny, ever loyal, manage to free him at the last possible moment.

The next phase of the plan centers on destroying or preserving the crucial evidence. Hallandsen wants the suitcase destroyed at a state-of-the-art destruction facility, but Egon intends to turn the tables. He wants to hold onto the suitcase and the Wandenberg documents as leverage—tools to force Hallandsen into a dangerous bargain. With Benny and Kjeld at his side, the gang uses a combination of improvised devices and quick thinking to regain possession of the suitcase and the documents, turning what could have been a definitive loss into a precarious win.

Their river of trouble leads them toward a dramatic transport site—the construction project for the Øresund link—where the final handoff of the materials is supposed to occur. On the way, Ruth unexpectedly enters the car in Kjeld’s place, insisting that Kjeld is not well enough to travel and that she will accompany them instead. The manipulation tests the gang’s solidarity, but Egon accepts the new arrangement and presses on.

At the construction site, their precarious status is tested once more. Bøffen and Alf spring another attack, forcing Egon, Benny, and Ruth into a dangerous cave beneath the site. In this perilous moment, the trio must safeguard not only the Wandenberg documents and Egon’s own plans but also their fragile alliance. They manage to free themselves with a combination of courage, resourcefulness, and a belief that the old ways can still work when faced with modern constraints.

An old Danish acquaintance reappears in Kjeld’s life: his son Børge, who has spent years abroad as an international company manager. The family revelations begin to intersect with the gang’s perilous venture, and Børge’s arrival kicks off a new series of discoveries. He learns what has happened to Egon, Benny, and Ruth and soon joins the chase to locate them at the construction site. The tension peaks as Ruth, Alf, and the others escalate the stakes, ultimately leading to a dramatic reveal of what has become of Egon’s master plan for the crown jewels.

The climax unfolds with a shattering turn: Ruth and Alf fling the suitcases carrying Egon’s plans and the Wandenberg documents onto a construction machine, vanishing from sight as the machine rumbles away. Hallandsen, realizing the depth of the loss and the peril of further pursuit, decides to flee toward Jutland, abandoning the chase. Holm-Hansen ascends into a position of power, and the former detective assistant Jensen faces retirement as his era closes.

In the final scenes, the survivors—Egon, Benny, Kjeld, Ruth, and Alf—decide to leave Denmark behind and head to a villa in Portugal, where they hope to live out their days in relative peace. Yet Egon’s mind remains fixed on one last target: the crown jewels, a lingering ambition that hints at future trouble even as they seek quiet. The legacy of the Olsen gang, the thrill of the long con, and the lure of a final, audacious caper all fuse together in a conclusion that promises that, for this crew, endings are rarely simple—and the next scheme might be just around the corner.