The Olsen Gang (Danish: Olsen-banden, Norwegian: Olsenbanden, German: Die Olsenbande) is a fictional Danish criminal gang in the eponymous comedy film series. The gang's leader is the criminal genius and habitual offender Egon Olsen and his accomplices are Benny and Kjeld (Kjell in Norwegian). The gang members are harmless, extremely rarely target ordinary citizens, and never use violence. A Norwegian version of the film series was also made (a total of 14 films from 1969 to 1999), in most cases based directly on the scripts for the Danish films.
The first of 14 Olsen Gang films presents us with Egon Olsen, head of the gang, and his friends Benny and Kjeld, who want to become the best known gang in Denmark and eventually Europe by stealing a famous Bavarian work of art currently displayed in a Copenhagen museum. Although Egon's plan works out fine, there is only trouble ahead for the little gang.
A good looking female social welfare worker makes Egon Olsen forget about crimes for some time, but when an American gangster breaks into a local bank and the police think its Egon's work, he has to get back to work to prove he's innocent.
The Olsen gang in Jutland. Ones again Egon Olsen has a plan when he gets out of Vridslose State Prison. He has found out that the Germans left a large sum of money (in American dollars and gold bars) in one of their commando bunkers, when they were defeated in 1945; the only problem it's in Jutland. Egon, Benny and Kjeld "appropriate" a car and drives to Jutland along with Kjelds wife and child Yvonne and Borge. They look forward to fooling the the people in Jutland, but of course, things don't go quite as planed. It ends with Benny, Kjeld, Borge and Yvonne sitting in the train back to Copenhagen, were they are overtaken by Egon in his car on the road next to the track. This is the last time the Olsen gang goes to Jutland.
After his usual stay behind bars, Egon has another cunning plan involving millions. They rob over 4 million from a money transport. The gang keeps a low profile and hide the money. But it's stolen by "Kongen" and "Knægten", who immediately start living it up - in the penthouse suite at the Sheraton. The suitcase with the money changes hands several times, before Kongen's daughter takes of with all the money.
When Egon Olsen gets out of Vridlose State Prision once again, his friends Benny and Kjeld do not want to know about his new ingenious plan: they are actually WORKING in a shop! Thus, he has to think of something else to get his hands on the money of some international gangster.
The Olsen Gang has finally made it. They are in Mallorca, having fulfilled their dream. Almost, that is. They don't have any money, so Egon has to open a safe at a restaurant to get some. As usual, however, Egon ends up in prision. When they return to Denmark, he has a new plan.
Egon and his two cronies managed to sneak a fortune with them to Spain. Here they live a life in a whirl of pleasures, but they are not truly happy. While Egon always has the money chained to him, Bøffen still manages to steal them. Egon ends up in jail once again, and when he comes out, he has a brilliant plan.
Egon and the gang are hired to stage a robbery of an antique Chinese vase for an economically challenged baron. Naturally they fooled, which infuriates Egon. The gang tries to get back at the baron by switching the vase with a cheap Hong Kong copy. One attempt is made during the barons hunting party, where Egon ends up being bricked up in the catacombs. In another attempt, the gang has to coordinate breaking through several walls at The Royal Theater in Copenhagen with the "Elverhøj" overture.
Egon is starting to be a little forgetful; he forgot the zone number, so he fails to open the strongbox. When he gets out of Vridslose State Prison, Kjeld and Benny have become associates of Yvonne's cousin Georg from America. He is not just some old-fashioned strongbox thief that can't remember like Egon, but a young hip IT criminal, that thinks that everyone else is inferior. However, Egon doesn't take lightly to the Georg's patronizing so he sabotages Georg's computer and ruins his cup. This time Egon's ambitions reaches a new high, when he and his gang break in to the World Bank, and they get away with it. Of course, thanks to Yvonne, they aren't rich very long.
Some criminal EU ministers plan to turn Denmark into a gigantic fair ground and holiday paradise. Egon gets his hand at some important documents which could both make him rich and take care of Denmark's future.
Egon plans to exploit knowledge gained during his latest term of incarceration. By stealing the unmanipulated financial records of DanInvest he obtains the majority of the stocks in the department store Magasin du Nord, just in time for their closing sale. The attempt to get the red suitcase that will save the day they rob the main vault at the EEC headquarters in Brussels and end up hijacking a tank.
As usual, Egon has an ingenious plan. And, as usual, it works just fine until one of the gang members makes some kind of funny error. This time, however, even Egon's life is in danger, for some international criminals try to get rid of him by throwing him into a container filled with acid.
Criminal genius Egon Olsen presents his accomplices Benny and Keld with yet another infallible plan that can only end badly. The booty is a red suitcase containing values worth five million. The sinister mastermind Bang-Johansen carries the suitcase. The Olsen Gang follows him to Paris, where they put their cunning and carefully organized plan into motion.
Egon escapes from the psychiatric ward, where he has been incarcerated since the gang's last coup. Keld and Benny pick him up, and when Egon, as always, is planning the big heist, the Olsen Gang is once again on the move.
