Director: Roar Uthaug
Year: 2022
Country: Norway
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Giant Monster
Plot:
After a series of unnatural disasters, the Norwegian government brings in a paleontologist to help determine what's going on with the incidents. After uncovering proof that a massive Troll has been awakened by a slew of underground drilling operations in the area and is responsible for the damage being caused, they set out to stop it only to fall foul time and again due to the creatures' strange supernatural abilities allowing it to repair damage almost instantly. Attempting to utilize the fairytales of her youth as a means of combatting the massive creature, she sets out to stop its rampage through the countryside before it can cause untold destruction upon the world.
Story:
Overall, this was a pretty solid aspect of the film. The early setup here involving the connection with the local legends in the area with the flashback to her as a child living in the mountainous area and being exposed to the legends of Trolls in the region provides a great starting point for the later discovery of their existence. The connection got enhanced through the inclusion of her joining the military team sent to check out the strange events happening in the area allowing for the generally expected bit of her being the one to correct their scientific theories tying in the stories of her youth from her father. That makes the second half of his coming on board the team to help out feel quite enjoyable reestablishing their controversial relationship and carrying a solid storyline throughout the majority of the film.
In addition, the simplistic setup of employing all this during a traditional monster-on-the-loose creature feature. The first instances of the creatures' existence by appearing at the drilling site or the viral video showing it bursting out of the ground and attacking the tourist group filming nearby offer strong hints that something's going on which is combined incredibly well with the mysterious traces in the hillside later revealed to be footprints of the massive creature. That leads into the film's strong middle section detailing the military confronting the creature in the mountainside of the country which has several incredibly enjoyable setpieces with their firepower having no effect on it due to its supernatural abilities healing itself before any damage can take place.
Special Effects:
This was another great aspect of the film as it should with it being a monster movie of this caliber. Starting with the titular beast, the design is a great callback to the fairytales with the upright stance, knobby head, moss-covered body, and stubby tail which feels appropriately old-school in design and execution. The ability of it to blend into the environment and remain hidden is quite natural and comes across rather well with the ability to accurately blend into numerous scenes involving the creature wandering through the countryside or attacking a major population. It's clearly CGI but is pulled off well enough to not be a major distraction with the ability to blend naturally during these sequences.
That provides a slew of fun sequences as it establishes the threat of the creature and the build-up that comes about with that. The first sequence where it's breaking out of the ground in the mine trapping people inside under tons of dirt and rubble is repeated in the second appearance that has the benefit of being footage shot on the scene by a victim recovered after the fact that adds a special close-quarters vibe to the sequence. It also turns several of the big action scenes into rather fun encounters, with the sequence in the forest involving the military attacking it or the appearance at a water park that includes some spectacular shots of its scale standing in frames with the scurrying public or fighting back against the attacking military.
That leads into the city rampage at the end that involves some city destruction as well which is incredibly well-done and again mixes together some impressive work here. With the destruction caused here leveling small sections of the city while the military again tries to blast it away with ineffective firepower, this provides a slew of solid high-energy sequences with the destruction having some thrilling moments tapped in alongside the storyline motivations allowing for a great and emotionally-charged climax that's perfectly in keeping with the sympathetic monster route associated with these kinds of films. That is all quite fun and handled well enough as it's got a fun twist that ends the film on a solid note.
Other Factors:
Overall, there's just one extra bit to add here that tends to add a lot to like here which concerns the rather enjoyable heartbreaking storyline involving the main troll and his slowly-growing realization that he's the last of his kind. Given the background information about the history of the creatures in the community and the connection it shares with the town, it makes for a rather touching moment here where this plays on the pathos of the creatures' existence and desire for family that gives this a much more human feel than what would be expected.
About the only issue, if that could be considered for this kind of film, is to be found in the unnecessarily redundant and cliched human drama that tends to rely on rather formulaic tendencies involving her cooperation with the military. Bringing her onboard to help with their investigation into the incidents but yet refusing to do anything with her opinions and expertise is just so tired and underwhelming to see play out which is a big problem here with the uninteresting story to see repeated once again. Thankfully, it's one of the only issues here.
Overview: ****/5
A highly effective and generally enjoyable giant monster movie, this is a fun modern spin on the genre that tends to be let down only by somewhat nondetrimental factors. Those that appreciate this kind of giant monster movie, are fans of the creative crew, or are just curious about it while most others out there that aren’t into these factors should heed caution here.
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