La chasse

All norwegians do basically not like norwegian movies. Except for Flåklypa Grand Prix that everybody have seen. But if you look back into the archives you'll find this pearl. This is usually the only norwegian movie you'll read about in the film history. It's very unconvential and very modern. The narrator takes our side and ask the actors all the way. Thereby scenes become surreal and you ask yourself, what am I watching?

To make it short, it's great, even greater than the new french wave that came later that year. And I have never seen any movie similar to this. If you're going to see one norwegian film in your life, see this one.

Those 3 reviews are thorough enough, i have nothing more important to add on. This is a very good movie, ahead of its time, original and creative as it gets. Something like a drama/romance/noir/thriller with hints of Nouvelle vague, even an offbeat comedy element. Voice-overs from every leading character and something weird, these characters were communicating at times with voice-overs. Something even weirder : 4th wall broke many times, and the characters were talking to the..camera! This is almost brilliant. Very entertaining movie, even exciting at times, fast pace, unpredictable. Ending could have been better, but still, it was good enough. Not much to say, just watch it if you find it.

Erik Løchen made two films, the first one being Jakten (1959), the other one called Motforestilling (1971) they are both probably the best films to ever come out of Norway.

Jakten is half Jules and Jim (1962) and half Rules of the game (1939) Two men are "Fighting" over the same girl just like in Jules and Jim, and there is constant symbolism throughout the film about this all being a game, like Rules of the game.

The film takes place during the hunting season in Norway, and is jam packed with symbolism about the two men fighting for the girl are like the two dogs they are using to hunt.

Supriseingly is the imagery very good and the locations are marvelous.

If Erik Løchen had made more films it would might have been the Norwegian new wave (since it holds a lot of similarities with The French new wave starting about the same time) This is definitely the best place to start exploring Norwegian cinema and it might be the best Norwegian film ever made.

"Jakten" aka "The Hunters" (1959) has been voted by Norwegian film experts as the best film ever made in that country; I have not seen nearly enough Norwegian films to agree or disagree with such a claim, but it IS a very good movie in any case. The topic - a love triangle between a husband, a wife, and their best friend - is not strikingly original, but the writer-director Erik Løchen, who somehow only made two feature-length films in his career, uses revolutionary (especially for its time), unusual techniques, like the characters not only sharing their thoughts with the audience but also their thoughts interrupting each other's (!), as well as them often speaking directly to the camera. He also breaks the time-space continuum, making the present and the past feel as one. He shows himself to be a master of the medium. The film is ominous and foreboding, but it can be lyrical or even funny as well; it also boasts beautifully stark black & white cinematography, and is very well-acted. Only the very ending, although certainly unexpected, may disappoint some viewers. *** out of 4.

PLOT: Bjørn and Knut are two good friends. Together with Knut, Bjørn and his wife Guri goes for a trip in the Norwegian mountains to hunt. Knut has been in love with Guri since he first met her many years ago, but it was Bjørn who finally married her. In the mountains, the situation gets dramatic, when Knut tries to tell her how he feels about her.

The way the film is made is very unconvential. The actors talk directly to the viewer, and the narrator ask them questions about what they are thinking. With this metode we learn what they all think about each other. The film builds up to a climax, with a nice twist in the end.