I read about this obscure Norwegian anti-drug film in "Wasted", one of the excellent series of film reference books from Britain's Creation Publishers, and I got a chance to see it recently with English subtitles. I have actually seen A LOT of Scandinavian movies, but it occurs me that every single one of them (with the exception of the very recent, and very excellent Swedish vampire film "Let the Right One in")has been a sex-soaked scrompfest featuring softcore porn princesses like Christina Lindberg or Marie Lilejedahl. This is not a sex film or a horror film, but actually a straight drama for the most part, albeit with some exploitative content.
Two Norwegian teens meet and fall in love, at the same time they become addicted hashish. Apparently the Norwegian hash must be particularly good because the pair generally act like they're on heroin, pawning their stuff, stealing from a friend's brother, and having not-entirely-consensual sex with sleazy drug dealers. Eventually (and not a moment too soon) they descend into crime, prostitution and abject degradation. This film is not nearly as over-the-top hysterical as some American anti-drug films like "Reefer Madness", but it's also not as entertaining. As exploitation goes, it really doesn't hold a candle to a couple other hallucinatory, drug-themed sleaze-fests also profiled in "Wasted"--the Brazilian "Coffin Joe" film "Awakening of the Beast" and the insane Italian film "The Bloodstained Lawn".
Far be it from me to complain about the gratuitous nudity from the pretty lead actress that occurs about an hour in (if you can stay awake that long). I do have to complain though about the gratuitous DANCING. God, these kids spend a lot of time dancing! Even when the female lead goes to a skeevy drug dealer's house to get drugs (and get raped), she has to dance with him for five minutes first. Fortunately, the music they're dancing to isn't completely awful. The title song "Heaven and Hell" (which is in English for some reason) even borders on catchy.
The degradation certainly could have been a little more degrading, and this movie boasts the least intimidating group of drug dealers I've ever seen in one of these movies. One guy looks like seedier, Norwegian version of Maynard C. Krebs from the old "Dobie Gillis" TV show (or Jughead from Archie comics). This isn't a bad movie necessarily, but it is definitely kind of dull
