This is a (somewhat) true story of a small group of Norwegian resistance fighters who risk their lives to sabotage a heavily protected Nazi heavy water plant during World War II. At one point the use of heavy water was believed to be a possible path to an atonic bomb. Disrupting the German atomic program was a major priority for the allies.
The film stars Kirk Douglas as Rolf Skisakera, a Norwegian scientist who provides vital information about the plant and Richard Harris as Kåre Stenstad, a Norwegian resistance leader. Kirk Douglas's character is not entirely sympathetic. In fact he's, kind of a jerk. Some of this seems unnecessary to the plot, making me wonder if the role is based on the character of an actual person.
The film is a suspenseful thriller more than a war movie. The action sequences are well-staged and tense, and the special effects, mostly miniature work I assume, are impressive. The the cinematography is quite good with what I assume to be extensive on location footage, capturing a stunning winter landscape. There's quite a lot of sneaking around in deep snow, repelling off steep cliffs and, of course, skiing.
A small criticism I'd make is that the character's nationalities were handled inconsistently. The Germans spoke English when it was plot-convenient and German otherwise. When they spoke English an accent was included (not that it wasn't obvious who the Nazis were). The Norwegians however spoke with either some sort of vague "Norwegian" accent, or in a somewhat British accent (or an actual British accent where the actors were in fact British). Other Norwegian characters spoke in an American manner. Douglas used his normal voice throughout, for example. Because of this I didn't realize until quite a bit after Douglas's character appeared that he was in fact supposed to be Norwegian.
Anyway, your basic "men on a mission" film, which also takes place during the Christmas season as it happens. So it's a Christmas movie.
More reviews here on letterboxd:
No comments:
Post a Comment