up_north_girl Reviews

Gymnaslærer Pedersen (2006)

Great, but melancholy and thought-provoking.

[6/10 · 13 April 2006]

"Gymnaslærer Pedersen" is based on the novel " Gymnaslærer Pedersens beretning om den store politiske vekkelsen som har gjemsøkt vårt land" by Dag Solstad, one of the greatest Norwegian authors in modern time. The title means (in somewhat directly translated English): " Gymnaslærer(Gymnaslærer: teacher working in upper secondary school)Pedersens (name) report on the great political awakening that has haunted our country" The political awakening we're talking about, is the Marxist-Leninist movement, also called AKP (Arbeidernes kommunistparti:The labour communist party) The action takes place in the 1970's, and is a description of how the communist-movement rose and fell. The communist-movement used a romanticized description of both Soviet and China (during Mao), as an example of how they wanted the world to be. In an increasingly capitalist country, the communists dreamed of armed revolution. Pedersen tells his story of how these thoughts affected him, and how he experienced AKP and the Marxist-Leninism.

I think this is a great movie, not only because it has a simple but touching story, but also because it has elegant ways of emphasizing points and references. It also have some great filming.

The whole story is really good, but melancholy and thought-provoking, which are qualities I like in a movie. I think this movie really makes you think through your political beliefs (if you have some), and it makes you realize how important it is to view issues from more than just one angle. I don't think it is a political movie, because it doesn't tell you what to believe. It merely gives you an impression of how this political awakening affected some lives, and what became of it. Enjoy:)

The Polar Bear King (1991)

An old Norwegian folk tale

[6/10 · 28 July 2005]

It is difficult to judge this movie for me, as a Norwegian, because I've heard this fairytale since I was a child. The story is an old folk tale, written down in the mid 1800, by the "folk tale collectors" Asbjørnsen and Moe. The tale is very similar to both "the beauty and the beast", and especially the old Greek myth of Eros and Psyche.

The tale is built up as an ordinary fairytale, with the "3-times rule" and the moral. This movie can be a bit boring, and confusing, if you don't know the story. That is why my vote for the movie is 5, and an extra point for the fabulous fairytale:) I encourage anyone to read the tale of "Kvitebjørn KOng Valemon", especially if they would like to watch this movie.

Elling (2001)

unforgettable, and well-played by actors

[2 August 2004]

"Elling" is an unbelievable movie made after the books by Ingvar Ambjørnsen. These books about the kind of lost character Elling, are all amazing, and this movie really catches the "atmosphere" in the book.

The actor Per Christian Ellefsen who plays Elling, does a great job, and so does Sven Nordin who plays Bjarne. The scene in the cafeteria, when Elling wants " Flesk og duppe " and finds out thats not on the menu, is so well played, I almost thought it actually WAS Elling and Bjarne.

If you enjoyed this movie, I recommend you to see "Mors Elling". This movie explains what happened before the action in " Elling " takes place.

Team Antonsen (2004–2010)

A special type of humor, but incredible funny!

[31 July 2004]

The show " Team Antonsen" is incredible funny because of its insane humor! In the show they do things that never has been done before. They cook up-side-down, have experiments that are completely meaningless, and shock people by involving people with f.ex a handicap or something, without focusing on the handicap. The humor is crazy, but not "uncivilized ".

If you have seen the show, and liked it,I recommend you to watch other shows like: "Ut i vår hage" ( directly translated: "out in our garden"), "lille lørdag"(directly translated: little Saturday), and "åpen post" (directly translated:open mail).

The Sketch Show (2001–2003)

Hilarious! Great British humor!

[31 July 2004]

"The sketch show" is one of the funniest shows I have ever seen!

The sketches are funny and entertaining.

I don't know how they come up with it all! The actors are amazing at acting different characters.

The humor is one-of-a-kind, but oh...so funny! "The sketch show" always makes me laugh.

Personally, I just love British TV-series ( most of them), and the sketch show is one of my favorites. The humor maybe weird, and different, but that is just exiting, isn't it? Hilarious!

I recommend the show to anyone who cares for a laugh!