La mer en feu

Another Norwegian disaster movie which was a success in the Norwegian theatres. I wasn't expecting much from this, as the trailer seemed lame, telling the movie was overacted. I'm happy to say it was not. Before showing it abroad, they should make a new trailer, or it will be more lightly to bomb.

It started off with The Wave (Bølgen) in 2015 (Director: Roar Uthaug, Writers: John Kåre Raake and Harald Rosenløw-Eeg) which was 9/10.

Followed by The Quake (Skjelvet) (The Quake) in 2018 (Director: John Andreas Andersen, same writers as The Wave) which was 7/10.

Followed by The Tunnel (Tunnelen) in 2019 (Director: Pål Øie, Writer Kjersti Helen Rasmussen) which also was 7/10.

And now The Burning Sea (Nordsjøen) in 2021. (John Andreas Andersen, Writers: Harald Rosenløw-Eeg and Lars Gudmestad) which I think is 8/10.

Before this Norwegian disaster movies did hardly exist, maybe with the exception of People in the sun (Mennesker i Solen) from 2011 which has a funny approach and which I think is under-appreciated and I also loved to an 8/10.

The team behind The Wave was also behind The Quake, which is some kind of follow-up, and now this The Burning Sea, while The Tunnel was an exception.

Well, this is a step up, both when it comes to the catastrophe as well as in effects. The CGI is, like in them all superb. No wonder Hollywood searches Norway for CGI-talents, as all these movies are made on what would be a shoestring budget in Hollywood. The story is also good, and quite believable, though of course there are plot holes, and things that are not drawn out too much, hence the length of the movie.

I was on the egde of my theater seat along the way. Even if I didn't like very much the kid-story took too much place. Bu well done! I hope for more Norwegian disasters!

I think this movie is a great example of good, Norwegian quality. It includes great actors, respectable CGI, and a deep, cinematic experience. In my opinion, this one is better than both the Norwegian The Wave (2015) and The Quake (2018), and can easily beat several of Hollywood's disaster movies. Recommending!

I enjoyed the film. The acting was good, the effects believable and the underlying message important.

I want to urge people who visit this site in order to decide whether or not to watch a particular film to concentrate on the subject, the director, the actors and the writers. If some or all of those intrigue you, go for it. Pay as little attention as possible to the reviewers' remarks and opinions as they are often misleading and/or wrong. Do not let them sway you. Respect the time and effort people have put into creating the films and form your own opinions.

Wow, I must say that Norway has indeed been on a roll in the recent years in regards of disaster movies. First there was the 2015 movie "Bølgen" (aka "The Wave"), which was followed by the 2018 movie "Skjelvet" (aka "The Quake"), and now in 2021 there was "Nordsjøen" (aka "The Burning Sea").

I must admit that I have been thoroughly entertained by these movies, and "Nordsjøen" proved to be equally enjoyable. So writers Harald Rosenløw-Eeg and Lars Gudmestad definitely managed to put together a good storyline for "Nordsjøen". Sure, there wasn't a whole lot of destruction and mayhem in this movie, which was a shame, but "Nordsjøen" was a very well-written story-driven movie. And the story was spiced up with a natural disaster. So it was actually still quite enjoyable.

For me, then I felt it was a shame that there wasn't more focus on the destructive forces of the disaster, because I was sort of expecting that. But luckily then director John Andreas Andersen managed to put writers Harald Rosenløw-Eeg and Lars Gudmestad's script to life on the screen in a very enjoyable and entertaining manner.

The acting performances were good in "Nordsjøen". And I wasn't familiar with the cast here, but they definitely put on good performances to bring the movie to life. I was sort of expecting to see actor Kristoffer Joner here, as he was in both "Bølgen" and "Skjelvet", but he wasn't here.

Visually then "Nordsjøen" was pretty good, I liked the special effects and it definitely came off as being realistic and added a lot of flavor to the movie.

If you enjoy disaster movies, then "Nordsjøen" is well-worth watching.

My rating of "Nordsjøen" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Yes, for American viewers it will remind "Deepwater Horizon" (2016) and others could probably compare it with movies about Chernobyl Disaster 1986 or 2021 Suez Canal obstruction. Anyway, yes this movies is about disaster that was caused nor by nature but by humans.

This movies has it strong sides like a good acting from the whole cast, interesting plot, and driven action without unreal things (like Dwayne Johnson failing out of the skyscraper, mundane routine in a movie "Skyscraper" (2018)). Unfortunately, this movie also has negative sides like copying American style of movies (examples above can be considered), obviously somewhere & somehow scenario is predictable, and "fancy" cultural contrast (It is not about Norway, it is about representation how scenes and certain actions showed).

Overall, it is a good movie and good story. The plot is interesting and has interesting twists. It is showing action from on side and beauty of culture from another side. Definitely, not a waste of time but sadly contain some vivid cliché. If it would had editing in regards of the scenario and cut in chronométrage, it could be 10 out of 10.

P. S: If you are in Greenpeace or in WWF, or fan of Greta Thunberg, you might have a serious "burnout" / "butthurt" particularly close to the end of the movie ;)