Troll Hunter: Review (Spoiler Free)

This little gem out of Norway has been hitting the indie and international film circuits recently to much applause. All I can say is, believe the hype. This is a "found footage" film which many have been comparing (unfairly) to The Blair Witch Project, since it's really the only Cinéma vérité that most American film goers are familiar with. The truth is, this movie is much more similar in tone to the French movie Man Bites Dog (which came out almost a decade before Blair Witch). As an aside, if you've never seen Man Bites Dog, rent it. It's a must see for anyone that likes dark comedies. Anyway, on to the review...

The story opens with a group of college kids doing a story on the bear problem and possible bear poaching in an area near them in Norway. They start following a guy they think is a bear poacher, mainly because they think it would be an interesting slant to the story for the college. As they find out rather startling, that this guy isn't out hunting bears, he's hunting trolls. 

Yes, trolls are real. They're dumb, they eat pretty much anything (including rocks), and the government knows about them and tries to keep them penned into an area using electric power lines. Hans, the troll hunter, works for the government in taking care of rogue trolls (insert your own Sarah Palin joke here) for all of Norway. 

Along the way we find out all the facts about trolls, and also the different variety (or species if you will) of them. One of the facts, that trolls can smell the blood of a Christian, is used to some very good comedic effect and timing in a few places in the movie. 

So how was the movie? It takes a little while to get started (almost 25-30 minutes) before you start to get into it, but once it does get started it's a fun ride. Also, if you're not into subtitles (and your Norwegian is a little rusty) then this isn't for you, since the entire movie is subtitled. Hans, the troll hunter, I can see becoming another iconic movie bad ass like John McClain, or (more likely) Ash from the Evil Dead series. He has a calm, matter-of-fact kind of attitude that works very well for this kind of movie. 

The CGI trolls were done very well, and for the budget were actually much more believable than the craptastic creature from JJ Abrams' bloated Super 8. Plus there's actually an attempt in this movie not to demonize the trolls, but to place them in the animal kingdom as just another part of the flora and fauna of the Earth. Very well done all the way around. 

Rating: Full Price Ticket for Multiple Viewings. If this movie is playing near you, go see it and have some fun. 

Super 8 Movie Review

I went and saw JJ Abram's new movie, "Super 8" tonight. I sprang for the extra dough to see it on the IMAX screen to get the better sound, and because the higher ticket price keeps the riff raff out of the theater. Here's a brief synopsis of the movie:

A group of kids in a small rural town circa 1979 are making a zombie movie by the train tracks when they witness a dramatic train derailment. This derailment brings in the Air Force and the military to cover up whatever was aboard the train. Strange incidents begin to happen all over town including power fluctuations and mysterious disappearances which the kids take it upon themselves to solve. 

This is Abram's homage to Steven Spielberg's 80's movies. You know, "E.T.", "Goonies", etc. as well as those 80's coming-of-age stories ("Stand By Me" comes readily to mind). So how does he do? Well, it feels like someone trying to do an 80's Spielberg movie, and pretty much missing the mark. Especially if you're one of those 80's kids, like me, that grew up seeing classic Spielberg movies first run in the theater. You can feel the nostalgia being forced. 

That's not to mean that there aren't some fine performances in this movie. Elle Fanning does a good job in quite a few scenes, but does a bit of overacting in a handful of scenes as well. The other five main boy characters come off as kind of a pale imitation of The Goonies, only being film nerds instead of adventurers. And the main boy, Joel Courtney, has a lot riding on his shoulders since the film is mainly seen though his eyes, and he's nearly in every scene. 

Abrams' main problem with Courtney and Fanning is that you can tell he's overly enamored with the actors and he tends to linger on them a little too long for comfort. Yes, Spielberg used to do this as well, but he used it sparingly to call attention to certain scenes. Abrams uses it at the drop of a hat.  

So how does the movie story hold up? Not that well, really. These kids get into and out of ridiculous situations with ease. With so much ease in fact, that they never really truly feel like they're in any danger. Also, just like in an 80's Spielberg movie, the kids always know more than the adults, and frankly that cliche just doesn't work well anymore. 


Then there's the much ballyhooed monster. You really never get a good look at the entire creature. Sure, you get a good look at its face in one scene, but it almost seems like a different creature when it's moving due to the weird movement of its limbs and the use of CGI. Also, the creature's motivation for the destruction it causes is set up well, but you would think it would go about things a little differently so as not to draw as much attention to itself given the circumstances. That's where one of the movie's flaws comes into play, because you see that the creature does have a hiding place, but then it rampages all over parts of town drawing so much attention to itself that it kind of makes no sense as to why it has a hiding place in the first place. 


So is this movie worth the hype and your money to see it in the theater? Frankly, no, it's not. It's a nice, extravagant, vanity piece and homage to different time and movie type, but it falls flat in a lot of been-there-done-that archetype that we've seen in films that were made much better long before this one was ever thought up. So don't fall for the false hype.


Rating: Rental. Seriously, this summer and this year are packed with movies coming out, and this one can easily be missed being seen in the theater since it will be out on DVD in the Fall anyway.