Arme Riddere

I was looking forward to Arme Riddere, told it was a crime story told in a Tarantino/Coen-stylish way. And it's good, though maybe not as funny as I thought it wood be. Still this is good entertainment, and well acted, and the story, based on a manuscript by Jo Nesbø, also has it's great outline. The filming technique is also well done.

Well, what happens? Terrified and bloody, Oscar Svendsen awakes clinched to a shotgun in a strippers joint. Around him 8 dead men, and police aiming at him. To Oscar it's clear that he is innocent. It all started when four chaps won 1,7 million on the pools...

The film starts off with meeting the main characters, Oscar and the detective, slowly starting to believe Oscars' story about him and his three criminal friends.

I goes wrong from the start. And is it really a good idea playing the pools which three inmates trying to get back in real life? Of course not. And from ten on the story gets bloody. Too bloody for Norways' biggest newspaper, which said it was impossible to review. It's not, and this statement is just silly. As most other Norwegian reviewers have stated later on.

This is hardly a comedy, though there are some good laughs tucked in the story. The story is sick and twisted, but not worse that it could actually have happened in that kind of wrong environment.

Arme Riddere is good fun, but lacks the quality of a classic. May this is because it's not drawing the line completely out. Tt's not really a crime story, not really a comedy, a.s.o. But if you're not afraid of some gore, I think you'll have a really good time watching this.

Based on a story by renowned crime writer Jo Nesbø, Jackpot stars Kyrre Hellum as Oscar, who awakes clutching a shotgun on the floor of a strip joint strewn with dead bodies and swarming with police officers. Taken for questioning by hard-nosed cop Solør (Henrik Mestad), Oscar recounts the unlikely events leading up to this point, starting with him winning a share of a 1.7m krone prize in a betting pool. But is Oscar telling the truth or spinning a wild yarn?

This was a blind buy from Poundland, and while I wouldn't exactly say that I hit the jackpot with my gamble, I don't regret spending my hard-earned cash on the DVD (all £1 of it!). Director Magnus Martens handles the darkly humorous tale of crime, treachery and murder with confidence, his cast put in solid performances, and there is plenty of grisly violence to keep fans of gritty crime capers satisfied for the duration. Where the film falls down slightly is in its narrative, which, despite plenty of twists and turns, isn't quite as clever or as deranged as it is clearly intended to be—certainly not on a par with the absurdist work of The Coen Brothers, as the DVD cover states.

6.5 out of 10, rounded up to 7 for IMDb.

Other reviewers have outlined the story quite well so I'll keep this short. This film is very entertaining and very funny. Of course that depends on what you find funny. Almost all the humour is so called black comedy. Some people might find the comedic scenes distasteful but they made me laugh out loud and that's because, although gory, they are somewhat cartoonish. The script is tight and flows nicely although the film could have been 15 - 20 minutes longer. The ending feels a little rushed and is not as satisfying as it could have been. These are small quibbles and overall I would heartily recommend the film both for the thriller and comedic aspects.

''Arme Riddere'' is a short, in running time (85 minutes), but also fascinating and enticing viewing experience that will appeal to the many Nordic Noir fans around the globe as it is based on a story by the Norwegian super-star crime writer, Jo Nesbo, the author of the notorious Harry Hole series. This is a really compact film where the intricate as well as -in many parts- amusing plot unfolds at a brisk pace, leaving no room for pointless dialogue scenes that contribute nothing to the movie's central theme and plotline. The story sets off when four friends and colleagues win the Jackpot in the national lottery and it is narrated through the police interrogation of the main protagonist, Oscar, who is the last man standing alive, as all his other friends are dead. The main question of the film is this: is Oscar a reliable narrator of the events that occurred after the lottery win or he is lying in order to keep himself out of the prison? The riddle is solved in the last -intent- ten minutes of the film where everything turns upside down, as it often does in Nesbo's stories. This is a movie that is worthy of your attention and its short running time makes it even more easy to watch. The cast is doing a fine job with some of the most well-known and respected Norwegian, and Scandinavian in general, actors starring in the main roles. Peter Andersson (''The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo'',''Kommissarie Winter'', ''Kraftidioten''), Henrik Mestad (''Okkupert'', ''Conspiracy of Silence'') and Mads Ousdal (''Varg Veum'', ''Wisting'') are some of them. If you are a Jo Nesbo's, fan, you should watch it immediately and the same goes for every Scandi-Noir aficionado.

JACKPOT is a Tarantino-esque crime thriller, laced with black comedy and based on a story by Jo Nesbo, the man responsible for the excellent HEADHUNTERS. This film isn't another HEADHUNTERS, but it does feel in the same territory and it comes close at times. It's a gruesome tale of thieves falling out, packed with twists and turns and all manner of unholy murder.

The story begins with deceptive simplicity: a work syndicate win millions on a lottery. However, things soon take a dark turn indeed, and we're soon up to our necks in blood-spraying murder. Apart from the opening flash-forward scene which spoils later surprises (I typically hate non-linear scenes in films, except in the likes of PULP FICTION where they're done right), there's little to dislike here.

The actors are likable, the direction is decent, and the comedy really adds to the experience. JACKPOT is a perfect film for both fans of Scandi crime and madcap black comedies; not a classic perhaps, but it's certainly good and better than most even if it does tell a familiar storyline these days.