Furia

As a cooperation between Norwegian and German production companies, I guess there was an agreement to carve up the action between the two countries and use actors of both nationalities. I have to say that I am impressed with the standard of English of all the players - the Norwegians and Germans had to converse in English amongst themselves but then both nations are reputed for the high level of their language instruction.

Unlike other reviewers, I found the second part of the series, set in Germany, more exciting despite the often gaping plot holes. I had found Asgeir's move to the remote village not credible and didn't believe that his face couldn't be kept out of the newspapers or even local TV. Someone in a witness protection programme doesn't blithely carry on in their former job but just with a lower profile and a new name. Some of his actions, as a former Special Ops member, were also hard to fathom.

Ragna's role was problematical as well. There is a debate all around the world in these times of terrorism from whatever quarter as to whether undercover agents should be allowed to break the law during an infiltration of a subversive group. She was doing so in spades to enable herself to ingratiate herself into the bunch of right wing loons who had a plan to destabilise Europe.

The show was hers, really; after the action switched to Germany, Asgeir's role and participation became minimal and I assume the actor playing his part was written in to those scenes simply because he had demanded to be in the eight episodes. Things got rather far-fetched at times, especially when tracking the mobile phone. What top level agent would believe that such a careful terrorist group would have kept it on? And if they did, why?

As I said, there were several plot holes, the most glaring of which was that no one thought of speaking in Arabic to the school terrorists. My Arabic language skills are not the best, but I would have placed what country they were from within a minute.

Well, it was all done at a fast pace with plenty of action and I enjoyed it.

I watched with subtitles as conversational Norwegian is beyond me but the German was pretty clear and the English-language parts were perfectly enunciated. I'm going a bit deaf so I usually watch even English programmes with subs, but these foreign actors were easier to understand than many English ones! This was a worthwhile watch.

Furia is an intense and timely thriller about politics, terrorism, and identity in Europe. The story takes place in Norway and Germany and follows two main characters living under false names. Ragna, also known as Ellen, is a Norwegian secret agent working undercover in a dangerous neo-Nazi group. Asgeir is a former police officer in hiding, who gets pulled into a murder case that reveals something much bigger and darker.

The show is visually beautiful, using lots of drone shots to show Norway's peaceful nature and Berlin's rough city life. While some may find the drone use a bit much, it still gives the show a movie-like feel. The action scenes are intense but always connected to the characters' emotions.

The writing is strong, especially in how it shows the bad guys and the emotional struggles of the leads. Ragna/Ellen ((Ine Marie Wilmann) stands out as a powerful and complex character, while Asgeir's (Pål Sverre Hagen) emotional side might not work for everyone.

In Season 2, the story gets even more exciting. Ragna is wrongly accused and, together with Asgeir, travels across Europe trying to stop a terrorist attack. With suspense, strong acting, and real-world issues, Furia is a smart and gripping watch for fans of serious thrillers.

Not surprisingly on a conservative dominated site like IMDB, this brilliantly executed, intelligently written series has got a very low rating and plenty of negative reviews. Do not be fooled. This is a thought provoking and smart thriller with political undertones. Unless you are a Nazi or neo-Nazi, I don't see how you cannot like this. Yep, I know this is provocative. It is intentional. Why should I always be the one getting annoyed by the comments here?

Beautiful norwegian scenery from the west coast of Norway, and the actors even spoke the local dialect for that area. The story takes the viewer from Norway to Germany and the original language of all locations is kept. Good actors, good story, good tension, quite a few twists and surprises, and just a few minor annoying logical questions I thought the director ought to do something about.

But all in all a great binge story that'll keep you glued to your chair.

Some reviewers have noted that the start was great and the end so long and drawn out with nothing happening.

That is part of the genius of the film! We start off with breathtaking Norwegian scenery, fumbling local cops, and begin to understand what is happening. It helps to know what happened at Utøja in Norway in 2011 in order to understand the motivation.

We cut to boooooring German landscapes, the chaos of Berlin, and dive deeply into the inner workings (or rather, dysfuncationality) of German officials. That is what makes it so believable, and scary.

The acting is great! Ine Marie Wilmann can talk with her eyes, Christian Berkel does a very believable move from arrogant minister to human back to arrogant minister. Some of the others are a bit two-dimensional, but they fit so nicely into Norwegian and German stereotypes.

Another Scandinavian Noir gem. And unfortunately, too believable. No more, don't want to spoil. See it.