Kraftidioten

As the critics said some days ago, when Kraftidioten (International titled "In order of disappearance") premiered in the main program of the Berlin Film Festival, this is both hilarious, rough and beautiful. While giving loads of fun and entertainment, you'll soon discover that the film has a complex underlying theme which makes this interesting on a much wider scale.

But still, this is not a film for the faint hearted. That said as a warning, because the body-count is bigger than in any Norwegian film I've seen before. There's no sex, but all violence in this, still testosterone filled, movie with a hero called "Dickman". You can't say it more obvious than that.

Or what about a plot with a Swedish plowman working in the remote Norwegian high mountains dealing with Norwegian and Serbian gangsters in a vigilante film, crossed with beautiful Norwegian landscape and droll humor!?! Well, it's completely up my alley.

Hans Petter Moland always delivers. He has made the great films "A somewhat gentle man", "The last lieutenant", "Zero Kelvin", "Aberdeen" and "Comrade Pedersen" amongst others. All of them recommended! It's "A somewhat gentle man" which is most like this last one.

If you loved "Fargo", "Burn after reading", "The big white" or "In Bruges" this is the film for you. It's almost a mix, though it's a bit more dark and bloody, and has a more serious underlying theme. This is balanced beautifully with giving death announcements in a way I've never seen before after the body count rises.

It's seems like a film that doesn't take itself too seriously, though it still has some hilarious Tarantino-like discussions, mainly from minor roles, which adds a lot to the film. They are discussing the great food in the Norwegian prison system, how Norwegians are so environmental that they pick up dog litter in little bags, and the Scandinavian welfare system is discussed as a need because of the snow and lack of sun. A country where even the gangsters drink tomato juice and drive hybrid electric Fisker Karma cars.

But what makes "In order of disappearance" stand out as much more than a hilarious masculine violent "Fargo" is that it actually is a deeper comment about how men act. Our anti superhero is called Dickman, because he really acts like one, though still being a nice and likable man. Not able to express feelings to his wife, which leaves him, avenging that his bloodline via his lost son is all that matters. Of course we know that our society is patriarchal. In this film it's over-exaggerated, but giving a good comment on today's society. The men are the one's both criminal and the users of violence. Dickman didn't even know his son, and though being a "nice" kidnapper, he doesn't even know how to read a bed time story. The film has almost no affection, except between men, and film maker Moland knows to punish those kinds of forbidden feelings. He also, in more way than one, express that men are stupid, doing stupid things, which almost always has a severe consequence.

This is the kind of film I wish would never end. I enjoyed it immensely right from the start, and it even grew from there. The film doesn't give all answers, but our vigilante hero at least gets to do some "good" deeds along the way. And if you hate drug dealers, then this is the film for you.

Stellan Skarsgård is perfect as the understated Swedish immigrant, just voted the inhabitant of the year in his little mountain town, which is a place we really don't get to know where is. The signs says "Welcome to Tyos..." and then the snow constantly covers the rest of the name. Even Oslo is made as a Alaskan-like ice city, where mountains are put where they usually not are. Our hero takes the matters in his own hands when he understands that the police are considering not to investigate the case of his son found dead by drug overdose in the city. He knows of course this is murder. And he is going to revenge his son's death.

The film has so many great supporting roles, which all make up this story, and I'm sure this film will do great world wide. Great scripting again from Danish Kim Fupz Aakeson and great filming by Philip Øgaard. The scenery is awesome, an adds to the film's sentimentality as well as beauty, which makes the whole environment even more exotic.

It's the fourth time Stellan Skarsgård is featured in a Moland-film, and it's not difficult to understand why. But Bruno Ganz is perfect as the Serbian gangster Papa and I also loved Pål Sverre Hagen as the neurotic vegan gangster "Greven" (The Count). But so many from the supporting cast should be praised as well.

Be sure to pick up this treat of a dark gangster comedy! As bloody as they come, but still with a great heart! You won't regret!

Stellan is stellar in Kraftidioten and so are the ever-neurotic villain and his comrades. Northern comedies are famous for a sort of mocking realism, spiced with irony, complete, as a rule, with a generous amount of black humor (cf. Adam's Apples, Flickering Lights, The Green Butchers). Kraftidioten doesn't fail to deliver on that count, for sure. It is at the same time serious, playful, hilarious, and thus highly entertaining. The plot doesn't have huge surprises in store, but what it does have is of the finest strain. The story is nicely spun; the characters are memorable, and dialogs are well-written and wonderfully witty throughout.

The son of a snow plower driver is killed by drug dealers for something he's not involved in. This sends the father, who is by the way a highly-esteemed citizen thanks to his work for the community, into a paternal rage and on a quest to avenge his son, setting a domino effect in motion in the local mafia's life.

A snow-covered dark comedy that should please a wide variety of movie lovers for all the good reasons. Double thumbs up! 9/10.

First Headhunters, now this.. The films that keep coming out of Scandinavia, and in particular Norway, are hard to beat. Headhunters was most definitely one of my favourites of last years and this is also very high on the list.

For me it's the (fairly) unknown actors, the absolutely shameless and inventive humor and I guess that beautiful landscape. And of course the great, very well known, Stellan Skarsgard for whom this seems like it's especially made for. He is perfect and such a great character that you will be rooting for him long after the film is finished. He makes the film, but it probably would have worked with another actor as well, as the story is so original and highly entertaining.

Absolutely loved it and can't wait to see it again. Hollywood: HANDS OFF 8/10

"In Order of Disappearance" is NOT a film for everyone. In some ways, I'd categorize it as 'Murder Porn'...a movie with many, many vivid and brutal killings...like a Tarantino or Guy Ritchie movie. And, like one of these incredibly carnage-filled movies, it's also exceptionally well made. But being well made does not mean it's for everyone....it is a really nasty story of revenge.

When the film begins, two guys are abducted and one is murdered. The other escapes and eventually makes it to see Nils Dickman--the father of the dead man. It seems that the guy who got away was involved with drug dealers but Dickman's son was completely innocent. Well, Nils isn't about to let go and has decided he must have justice--even though he's just one man against a gang of vicious drug dealers. It's funny, as Nils was just awarded a Man of the Year award...and now he's about to become a vicious killing machine.

Nils only has one lead and soon abducts this lead. He savagely beats and then murders the gang member after he learns the next one in the chain of command and does the same once again. After Nils kills his third gang member, the gangs take notice...and think it's a rival Serbian gang behind all this. Soon, it's all out war...and bodies are piling up faster than the audience can keep track of them.

This film is exquisitely directed and realistic to boot. But it's also blood-filled and violent...and I am talking about very realistic and hideous killings. I was actually surprised, as I just assumed Americans and Brits were the only ones making these sort of films! Well made...but please, please, please...DON'T let your kids, mother or Father O'Reilly catch you watching this film!

Well-made action-thriller with Stellan Skarsgård as a decent Swedish snowplowerer in the Norwegian mountains becomes an avenger for his dead son.

Reminds me more of American revenge flicks like 'TAKEN (2008)', 'JOHN WICK (2014)' and 'THE EQUALIZER (2014)' than anything typically Scandinavian... Without ever getting too cheesy or 'poserish' which tend to happen at times when the Scandis attempt at this (for instance 'EXIT (2006)', 'GANGSTER (2007)' or '9 MILLIMETER (1997)' are examples of this when done poorly).

But yeah here they get it right, with a solid and incredibly intense crime boss played by Pål Sverre Hagen and overall pretty stellar acting.

A bit of dark comedy in the mix as well reminiscent of 'FARGO (1996)' and 'THE BIG WHITE (2005)'.

Liam Neeson is in the talks of being the lead in an American remake and that seems like it would be the go to guy with the task, however not sure if it will get any better as it's just fine the way it is.