Check out streaming holiday favorites and binge-worthy classics in our Holiday Streaming guide.
Related lists from IMDb users
Title: Headhunters (2011)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Aksel Hennie | ... | ||
 |
Synnøve Macody Lund | ... | |
| Nikolaj Coster-Waldau | ... | ||
| Eivind Sander | ... | ||
| Julie R. Ølgaard | ... |
Lotte
(as Julie Ølgaard)
|
|
|
|
Kyrre Haugen Sydness | ... | |
|
|
Valentina Alexeeva | ... | |
|
|
Reidar Sørensen | ... | |
| Nils Jørgen Kaalstad | ... | ||
|
|
Joachim Rafaelsen | ... | |
|
|
Mats Mogeland | ... |
Sunded
|
|
|
Gunnar Skramstad Johnsen | ... |
Monsen 1
|
|
|
Lars Skramstad Johnsen | ... |
Monsen 2
|
|
|
Signe Tynning | ... |
TV-vertinne
|
|
|
Nils Gunnar Lie | ... |
TV-vert
|
Roger Brown works as one of the most powerful headhunters in Norway. To support his extravagant lifestyle, he is also an art thief, which he does in cahoots with his friend, the gun toting Ove Kjikerud. They replace the originals with forgeries, which go undetected at least until the trail back to them goes cold. His outward bravado, based primarily on building upon reputation, masks his insecurities, especially in his short physical stature. He feels he needs that confident demeanor and wealth to get what he wants, including his trophy wife, art gallery owner Diana Brown. However, he almost seems to like the thought of what Diana represents more than Diana herself. As such, he has a mistress on the side named Lotte. The issue of having a baby - Diana wants to get pregnant while Roger doesn't want her to - is another bone of contention in their marriage. The two sides of Roger's professional life intersect when Diana introduces him to Clas Greve, who would be perfect for the CEO ... Written by Huggo
Touted as the next Stieg Larsson (or if you prefer, Norway's answer to Sweden's other major literary export, Henning Mankell), Jo Nesbo's Headhunters had already been earmarked for a (no doubt inferior) US remake before it was even released overseas.
Roger Brown (Aksel Hennie) is a 168cm recruitment consultant with a big house, a beautiful wife and an inferiority complex that drives him to moonlight as an art thief. The prosaically named protagonist is no Thomas Crown - he steals to keep a (wildly overleveraged) roof over his head and only pockets a measly 30% of the revenue from his ill-gotten gains. Even his appearance is counterintuitive - more bug eyed Steve Buscemi than suited and booted Bond. Even so, there's more going on here than meets the eye, but suffice to say that his real troubles start when he decides to go after The Big One - the retirement score that will put an end to his financial troubles and allow him to keep his ridiculously attractive wife in the style to which he's become accustomed.
To say anything more about the plot would be superfluous, but I will take a moment to admire the confidence of the director Morten Tyldum. Headhunters is, in a sense, typically Scandinavian - stark, brooding and with as much silence as dialogue. The style here serves the substance - the camera is often completely immobile, forcing the audience to concentrate on what's going on, a complete contrast to the craftsmanship/gimmickry more typical of glossy mainstream thrillers coming out of the US. Rather than spoonfeeding the audience every single clue, Headhunters isn't afraid to lead the unwitting watcher on a merry dance. Naturally the whole enterprise rests on the small but perfectly formed cast, particularly Hennie, with whom we slowly come to empathise, and the more typically suave Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau as the former exec with a murky past.
If Headhunters has a particular weakness, it's that it spends most of its time descending into increasingly dark (and occasionally graphically violent) territory, while occasionally veering into light hearted caper. This does feel slightly bewildering, but to be honest, it's a relative minor criticism. Headhunters is definitely worth catching (particularly given the woefully slim pickings over the past few months), if not now, then 6 months from now when it premieres on Film Four in the middle of the night. Scandinavians (and cinéastes with a penchant for Northern European film) may be used to this kind of thing, but for the rest of us it's a wonderfully welcome arctic blast through the land's tat filled cinema screens.