Trollhunter

Norway has been plagued for centuries by a plague that few people know about. But thankfully, there is now a film that exposes what the government is desperately trying to cover up. For Trollhunter provides long overdue proof that trolls do indeed roam the forests of Norway, and nothing and no one is safe from their hunger and destructiveness.

As mysterious deaths continue to occur in the forests, for which the government says there is a very simple explanation. Supposedly, wild bears are on the loose. The trio of students hopes to get on the trail of a sensation and, armed with a video camera, follow the heels of the supposed poacher Hans (Otto Jespersen). But when they try to catch him in the act of illegal shooting, they discover that Hans is not hunting bears, but trolls. And so the planned documentary might bring the hoped-for sensation, but it always puts the students' lives in acute danger. Because with trolls is not good to eat cherries...

Trollhunter strictly follows the scheme, which was successfully established by the Blair Witch project and mutated by films like Cloverfield and [rec] to its own subgenre of horror and fantasy films. Invariably, the viewer is presented with supposedly found, secret footage of protagonists who have disappeared or been killed. However, this Norwegian entry doesn't use the documentary style to create suspense or creepiness. Instead, the whole thing is approached in a much more humorous and absurd way. So it's no wonder that Norway's most popular comedian Otto Jespersen could be won for the role of the troll hunter Hans, who had no problem filling the completely improvised dialogues with completely bizarre comedy. The way he spouts the most absurd troll theories with convincing seriousness and forces his three companions to perform quite a few unusual troll hunting rituals is just too funny and makes Trollhunter a really great fun .

While much of the play on myths and clichés surrounding trolls is lost in our latitudes, as in this country the unsightly forest dwellers hardly play a role in fairy tales and mythology. However, in the course of the film many of these myths are explained or incidentally woven into the conversations, so that even the ignorant in matters of trolls will have a lot of fun with the action. Of course, it takes a while until the first giant is seen - something that also belongs to the style of this subgenre. But boredom hardly sets in, as the wonderful rugged landscape of Norway shown here alone compensates for the somewhat worn beginning.

Trollhunter is an entertaining fantasy documentary with plenty of Nordic wit, numerous delightful ideas and even a little suspense. If you can get along with the slightly shaky Blair Witch handheld camera style, you should definitely check out this original troll hunt. Worth Seeing

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp