Nr24 - Monday 3rd February 2025

I watched this film based on all the positive ratings it had on IMDB, and I have to say, I do not agree with them.

The film tells the story of one of Norway’s greatest war heroes from World War II, and it’s very well made. I had no idea who he was, and that’s probably the case for most of the global audience.
The filmmakers seem to have ignored this fact, and made a film for Norwegians who already know his story.

I say this, because the way the story is constructed is completely ludicrous! They have the protagonist tell the story to an audience of school children, as an old man, in the present, in a kind of documentary format.

They then cut to him as a young man, and his story unfolds in a conventional cinematic way. If they began the story this way, that would be fine. But instead, they keep cutting to the present, older version of the protagonist, throughout the film.
It completely saps the film of any tension, jeopardy or stakes! Every time the younger version of the protagonist is caught in a moment of danger, you’re reminded of him as an old geezer, and so you know he’ll be fine.

It was very frustrating to watch, as the filmmakers kept sabotaging themselves, in what could have been a good movie.