It all starts off as you would expect, a message on the screen introducing the film, explaining that tapes were found containing a whole load of footage and the following is what was cut from all of that celluloid. So far so seen all before. What follows that message is not at all what I would have expected, much more than I had hoped for (and from the trailer my hopes were high) and it all left me wanting more. Much much more. In a very, very good way.
We start off following three students who are trailing Hans, who they think is a bear hunter (played by Otto Jespersen). He has become a bit of a mystery in local circles, he travels in a caravan and is kitted out with a load of gear that all seems to be a bit heavy handed, even for bear hunting. Interview attempts are refused gruffly, they wait bored as he sleeps by day and heads out on the road at night. That is until one night they head deep in to the Norwegian forests and get caught up in an exchange between Hans and the creatures he's really hunting. Trolls. Yes, Trolls.
The whole film is played with a completely straight face. Any disbelief that trolls really exist is quickly disposed of, as everyone accepts that this is a monster that we have to live with. There is a Troll Security Service, a shadowy FBI like division that is tasked with keeping them away from populated areas. The Troll Hunter Hans talks of myths (or what we think of as myths) as scientific fact, for example he talks of rapid calcification rather than turning to stone. It's this serious take on what is all grounded in fairy tale stories that bring the laughs, deadpan delivery of such stupid lines can't fail but bring a tickle. Then you have the trolls themselves. They look great, a few quid has clearly been spent on the effects (a budget of £3m is reported) and the film makers are proud of them. This isn't Jaws with only fleeting glimpses of what's involved, we see the monsters in all their glory very early on. There is no disputing that there is a cartoony quality to their appearance, and once again, when this is up against a tone that is so serious without any nods or winks to camera, it is genuinely both fun and funny.
It isn't all fun and games though, there are some genuinely scary moments. As you might expect there are plenty of jumps (easy to pull of on the handheld camera), but the scenes where the trolls are on the rampage are really exciting. They are massive hulking creatures and we are with the little people and their handheld camera. There is an impressive scale to it all. There are also one or two unexpected moments of unsettling violence (that you don't necessarily see, you actually hear) that do catch you off guard. Just when you get the sense that this is a fun, friendly romp, a bit of death and destruction comes along and makes you think twice about where the film is going. It just doesn't let you settle.
Otto Jespersen really deserves a hell of a lot of credit. He is really the only person on screen for any proper length of time, and the whole thing hangs on his performance. He nails the Quint-like character and then some. He gets all the best lines, never smiles and gets to be a bit of a hero at the end. If he didn't get it so right, the film would have fallen over very seriously.
The Troll Hunter is an absolute blast, it ticks all of the boxes, fun, funny, scary, it really puts you through the mixer. Its probably summed up best by it's last 5 minutes, going from barnstorming heroics, to sombre conclusion but then still finding the time to tack on some explaining at the end containing the biggest laugh of the lot.
The found footage film can live on, especially if André Øvredal has anything to do with it.
The whole film is played with a completely straight face. Any disbelief that trolls really exist is quickly disposed of, as everyone accepts that this is a monster that we have to live with. There is a Troll Security Service, a shadowy FBI like division that is tasked with keeping them away from populated areas. The Troll Hunter Hans talks of myths (or what we think of as myths) as scientific fact, for example he talks of rapid calcification rather than turning to stone. It's this serious take on what is all grounded in fairy tale stories that bring the laughs, deadpan delivery of such stupid lines can't fail but bring a tickle. Then you have the trolls themselves. They look great, a few quid has clearly been spent on the effects (a budget of £3m is reported) and the film makers are proud of them. This isn't Jaws with only fleeting glimpses of what's involved, we see the monsters in all their glory very early on. There is no disputing that there is a cartoony quality to their appearance, and once again, when this is up against a tone that is so serious without any nods or winks to camera, it is genuinely both fun and funny.
It isn't all fun and games though, there are some genuinely scary moments. As you might expect there are plenty of jumps (easy to pull of on the handheld camera), but the scenes where the trolls are on the rampage are really exciting. They are massive hulking creatures and we are with the little people and their handheld camera. There is an impressive scale to it all. There are also one or two unexpected moments of unsettling violence (that you don't necessarily see, you actually hear) that do catch you off guard. Just when you get the sense that this is a fun, friendly romp, a bit of death and destruction comes along and makes you think twice about where the film is going. It just doesn't let you settle.
Otto Jespersen really deserves a hell of a lot of credit. He is really the only person on screen for any proper length of time, and the whole thing hangs on his performance. He nails the Quint-like character and then some. He gets all the best lines, never smiles and gets to be a bit of a hero at the end. If he didn't get it so right, the film would have fallen over very seriously.
The Troll Hunter is an absolute blast, it ticks all of the boxes, fun, funny, scary, it really puts you through the mixer. Its probably summed up best by it's last 5 minutes, going from barnstorming heroics, to sombre conclusion but then still finding the time to tack on some explaining at the end containing the biggest laugh of the lot.
The found footage film can live on, especially if André Øvredal has anything to do with it.
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