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November 11th, 2011
04:33 pm - Troll Hunter
Last night I went to see the new Norwegian comedy-horror film 'Troll Hunter'. It's all 'hand held' footage shot by three teenagers doing a film project. They stumble on a grizzled tough guy who claims to be a pest controller for the Norwegian government. Yes, he is the eponymous troll hunter (trolls in this film are large aggressive humanoid animals). They pester him in an annoyingly enthusiastic way until he lets them come along with him to film trolls... in the dark woods... at night...
It's a fun film. It's deadpan in its style. It uses nicely done 'realistic' special effects to simulate glimpses of the trolls, but at the same time they are ridiculous creatures that look like comic illustrations from a children's book. But big and fast.
Characters keep saying 'Forget what you have read in fairy tales, this is real life'. But in fact a lot of what happens is directly taken from fairy tales. For example the hunter lures the troll by tying three billy goats gruff to a bridge. The trolls can 'smell the blood of a Christian man' (which I believe is the Norwegian equivalent of 'I smell the blood of an English man') which means atheists are safe if they keep out of line of sight.
Humour also comes from the cluelessness of the students and the shifty lying behaviour of Norwegian government officials as they try to cover up the fact that trolls are roaming about the place killing tourists. The audience I was watching with laughed a lot.
Norway, incidentally, looks a lovely place to visit. Apart from the rain. And the you-know-what.
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I enjoyed this one too. I loved the idea of the pylons as an electric fence. There's a little group of films which are influenced by Cloverfield, and I think this was the funniest. Norway is bloody fantastic to visit (and also bloody expensive). Magic still exists. And it is perfect for someone who likes walking. As long as it stops raining! It rains a lot in this film. But I still thought it looked lovely for a visit. This would be why I go to Norway in the winter (see icon), when the rain is in the more pleasant form of snow.
But I have got to see the film. |
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