King of Devil`s Island

Somewhere near the fjords of Oslo at the beginning of the 20th century: here on the small prison island Bastøy live a group of delinquent boys under the harshest conditions. Hakon (Stellan Skarsgård), the director of the prison, is sure that this is the only way to lead the young offenders back to the right path in life. When one day the outsider Erling (Benjamin Helstad) comes to the island, Hakon's methods don't seem to work for the first time. After a short time the boy tries to escape and he doesn't want to follow the rules in the camp either. While at first it seems that Erling's behavior completely sidelines him, as the other boys are too afraid of punishment or having their stay on Bastøy extended, a strong community soon forms, ready to rebel against the regime. When a tragic death occurs, the heated atmosphere on the island threatens to escalate for good...

King of Devil`s Island is based on true events. True, the film would be gripping and intense even without this information. But if you keep in mind while watching the drama that the story actually happened in a similar form, some scenes will make you run ice cold down your spine. Director Marius Holst was convinced, after intensive research and a conversation with a man who had actually spent some time on Bastøy as a boy, that the island and its history would offer a story that absolutely had to be told. The huge success of his drama in his native Norway seems to prove him right.

With the help of great camerawork and through the atmospheric set, the whole thing already seems visually very authentic. But it is the intense acting of the young actors in particular that draws the viewer deep into the action and doesn't let go until the moving finale. Without any form of kitsch and pathos, the story rises from a very quiet beginning to a dramatic escalation. In the process, it is the events that ultimately lead to the revolt of the boys that make one endlessly angry and are likely to bring tears to the eyes of many a viewer.

King of Devil`s Island is certainly not a light film, not a work that offers a fun evening at the movies. It`s much more of a demanding film, a gripping, moving drama that lingers and boasts truly first-rate acting performances. And for that it gets a well-deserved: absolutely recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp