This 2010 Norwegian import offers an impressive example of budget-lite ingenuity, and boasts some jaw-dropping special effects. That’s a good thing, because the film is otherwise painfully episodic and derivative. It was an early entry in the post-millennium Nordic horror boom that included COLD PREY, DEAD SNOW, RARE EXPORTS and the 2022 Netflix feature TROLL, another (and much lesser) troll-fest marked by brilliant special effects and less-than-edifying dramatic content.
… jaw-dropping special effects.
TROLLHUNTER (TROLLJEGEREN) is an entry in the digital POV horror craze, positing that the footage we see was created by three college twerps (Glenn Erland Tosterud, Johanna Mørck and COLD PREY’S Tomas Alf Larsen) who vanished into the wilderness while making a student project. Yes, the film is very BLAIR WITCH-like (complete with at least one ultra-shaky dashing-through-woods shot), and also borrows heavily from CLOVERFIELD and JURASSIC PARK (whose famous “Objects in Mirror Are Closer than They Appear” gag is echoed).
The narrative, at least, has some novel elements. It posits that the college kids at its center are making a Michael Moore-like documentary about the illegal activities of the notorious bear poacher Hans (Otoot Jesperson) in a vast nature preserve. Yet it gradually becomes clear that Hans is actually hunting giant trolls at the behest of the government.
As in the old legends of Scandinavian folklore, the trolls of this film are house-sized creatures that roam in darkness and like to chomp humans. These critters are especially hostile to Christians, being able to smell their blood from great distances; luckily most of the protagonists are atheists.
Yet, as was also outlined in the legends, the trolls turn to stone when exposed to bright light. For this reason Hans carries large arc lights in his car with which to flash the trolls. We actually see one such flashing occur, in a stunning sequence that seamlessly blends location photography and digital effects.
…a stunning sequence that seamlessly blends location photography and digital effects.
There’s no denying the enormous skill displayed by writer/director André Øvredal (who went on to direct the Guillermo Del Toro shepherded SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK), which results in some amazing sights. Unfortunately, the film overall plays like a short subject stretched to feature length, with bland protagonists and a mock-documentary format that, while impressively sustained, no longer seems very innovative or compelling; yes, after little more than a decade TROLLHUNTER is already quite dated. What ultimately registers, aside from the special effects, are Øvredal’s energy and invention, which are nearly—but not quite—enough.
Vital Statistics
TROLLHUNTER (TROLLJEGEREN)
Filmkameratene A/S
Director: André Øvredal
Producers: Sveinung Golimo, John M. Jacobsen
Screenplay: André Øvredal
Cinematography: Hallvard Bræin
Editing: Per Erik Eriksen
Cast: Otoot Jesperson, Glenn Erland Tosterud, Tomas Alf Larsen, Johanna Mørck, Urmila Berg-Domaas, Hans Morten Hansen, Robert Stoltenberg, Knut Nærum, Eirik Bech, Inge Erik Henjesand, Tom Jørgensen, Jens Stoltenberg