War Sailor

This movie, about a sailor who is in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean when the World War II breaks out, is a very deep and impactful journey where we experience the pain of war. The cinematography was great and the depression was clear. I think the main actors were incredible, especially Kristoffer Joner (as Alfred) and Pål Sverre Hagen (as Sigbjørn). The story was sometimes quite dark, and it was emotional to watch. My main critic of this movie is its runtime. It was far too stretched, which made the movie a little boring sometimes. I understand if this was supposed to make the movie feel sad and empty, but I had too much of that feeling. I wish it was more compact with more action, which would make the movie more exciting. Anyway, worth a watch!

I like Norwegian productions because they are in their way innovative and do not tend to copy what others do. Usually they have a pretty high standard, like this one.

The special effects, the story, the acting, the historical reconstructions, all are very good. The movie is emotional, it speaks about the second world war, but is never political. Just a story of heroes and war, stuff that happen before, during, and after the war.

It doesn't try to be polite, or push propaganda, it tells what could really happen when you are a sailor, part of the biggest fleet of ships, away from you family, trying to survive and hence come home. It speaks about values, future, and what really matters. In one word: intense.

Structured like a sweeping epic, Krigsseileren tells about the efforts of Norwegian commercial sailors in the Atlantic theatre during WWII. Two of Norwegian cinema's best actors over the past 10 to 20 years, Kristoffer Joner and Pål Sverre Hagen, play Alfred and Sigbjørn, two friends and conflicting personalities who deal with the pressures of the war operations and their ensuing effects on their personal lives after the war in each their own way. Left behind in Norway are Alfred's wife and children - and a whole nation with a lacking understanding of the war sailors' efforts and experiences. Writer/director Gunnar Vikene (Himmelfall) clearly has made it his personal agenda to tell the story of this oft-forgotten group of people, and although such passionate drive sometimes leads to indulgence, the film's strong sense of humanity and compassion elevates it and carries it through even in parts where the narrative staggers. A combination of authenticity, technical brilliance, and a clear artistic framework makes this into an all-encompassing viewing experience. That's Joner's own daughter Téa Grønner Joner playing his character's oldest child after the war.

This is another well-crafted war movie from Norway. Earlier, viewers were treated to a similar war movie, "Navik," also another well-made Norwegian production and shot in northern Norway.

What's impressive about War Sailor, which can be said about Narvik, too, is that it's a thoughtful movie without the obligatory hysteria that usually punctuates the genre.

The horrors of war don't distract the viewer from the compelling story that unfolds.

The major storyline may not be unique. There are war stories that highlight close friends in the battlefield who protect each other to the best of their abilities. A recent example is Devotion. Another is Band of Brothers.

This time around, the close friends are aboard merchant ships conscripted by the Norwegian government to the Allied war effort during the early part of World War II. This brings them to Malta and Liverpool en route to New York thence to Murmansk, Russia.

But aside from the gore of war that the limited series portrays, it also succeeds in driving home the raw emotions that loved ones torn apart by circumstance confront because of the reality of war wherever they are: in the high seas or in Bergen.

In the end, it's their love for each other, which can only be described as agape, that allows Freddy and Sigbjorn to survive the war and its aftermath.

There's this scene towards the end, when both men are in their seventies, in which Sigbjorn visits Freddie's family in Bergen on the occasion of the birthday of the latter's youngest son after so many years of absence. That scene is so gut-wrenching in unexpected ways.

The movie doesn't hesitate to inform the viewer, as an aside, of the losses inflicted on Norway for the sake of the Allied cause in terms of its citizens who died aboard its merchant ships as well as the number of such ships destroyed or sunk during the war.

This is a triumph of Norwegian cinema. Don't miss it.

How is it that the recognised luminaries in Hollywood can't do delivery like this anymore ? War and its brutality in full technicolour. Very reminiscent of Das Boot ( and feel deliberately so ), warts and all. I think the main thrust of the production is to highlight the lack of recognition most of these merchant seamen went through to keep the allies ahead of the fascists. More so, the country itself, whilst under occupation. The scene with young Aksel is particularly poignant and makes its point very succinctly. At times the pace is slow, but don't let that put you off, as overall it's particularly well done.