Troll review
by Jake Bourgeois, Contributing Writer
International offerings on Netflix are a dime a dozen, and they’re out with another one, via Norway: Troll.
Here, we follow an archaeologist, Nora (Ine Marie Wilmann), who’s called in to help the government identify and assist with the titular threat (making a beeline for Oslo). During this time, she’s given the opportunity to reconnect with her crazy father (Gard Eidsvold), who initially put the love of mythical creatures in her. The film takes a page or two out of Norse mythology, and, as someone who enjoys mythic tales, it was an easy hook to get me intrigued. Plus, Netflix has a sneaky solid catalogue of international offerings.
I’ve got to give director and co-writer Roar Uthaug (Tomb Raider) credit for the balancing act that he manages to pull off on this film. While Troll wears its influences on its sleeve, from visual homages to Jurassic Park, King Kong, and Independence Day, at least for me, it never quite feels too cute — though it’s understandable if you disagree. Thematically, you’ll also see some similarities to disaster/monster films you’ve seen before. There’s both “humans are the real monsters” and “don’t mess with forces of nature you don’t understand,” but they fit well enough within the story that it really just earned a quick smirk while I was watching, and avoided long-term negative impacts.
So, if there’s really nothing new here, why does it work?
Firstly, I think it’s competently made from a technical standpoint. The action is shot pretty well, and the framing of the troll works. When your centerpiece is a giant, effects-driven character, the thing you don’t want is to take an audience out of the film. Mission accomplished on that front.
Secondly, I was able to connect to the members of the team. With Nora, we get to see some satisfying moments of her putting some of her male counterparts in place in the war room, and we are really rooting for her and her plan to eventually win out. Though Kim Falck’s character is initially introduced as the bumbling aide to the prime minister, I found him charming and a welcome addition to the team. Perhaps the most surprising addition to the team is Captain Kristoffer Holm (Mads Sjøgård Pettersen). While the assumption, given he’s our military team member, would be he’s going to be a stick in the mud who plays hardball throughout, with the idea that anything fantastical could be at play (don’t worry, we do get that from the rest of the council), his almost immediate accepting of Nora’s plan of action is refreshing. Finally, though she has less screen time than the rest of the team, I found Karoline Viktoria Sletteng Garvang’s prototypical “woman in the chair” (a-la Ned from the MCU Spider-Man) films to be an absolute scene stealer. It is always a pleasure when she pops back up.
In addition to working individually, the characters work well together as a team, which is just the cherry on top.
Troll knows what kind of movie it is, and it plays to that. At under two hours, it moves quickly, but doesn’t rush, and doesn’t overstay its welcome.
Well, at least until the totally unnecessary mid-credits scene that seems to be sequel bait. While this movie gets by on its competency and by being fun enough, a sequel, I think, would be a bridge too far.
Score: 7/10
Troll is currently streaming on Netflix
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