Rating: ***
Andre Ovedal's Troll Hunter starts with a disclaimer, which claims all images that are about to be seen are completely authentic. This mockumentary is about a group of students who choose to follow and record a mysterious bear hunter, 'Hans' (Otto Jespersen). They soon get far more than they bargained for, discovering that Hans is in fact hired by a secret government body to scourge the menace of real life trolls, that are causing destruction and devastation around the scenic mountains and forests of Norway.
Troll Hunter asks its audience to believe this new truth. Throughout the film, Hans shows the group signs of troll interference - mostly things we see every day and discount as natural occurences. The filmmakers endeabour to plant a single, simple idea in the audience's minds, making us doubt ourselves. I believe if a handful of cinemagoers leave the multiplex questioning the legitimacy of telegraph poles and and pylons really being electrified cages for unruly folklorish creatures, then Ovedal's work is done.
The first half is incredibly tense, with dark, silent moments giving viewers the uncanny feeling that something could jump out at any moment, reminiscent of The Blair Witch Project. However, that anticipation is ultimately far from warranted.
Footage is cleverly edited to echo hand-held, amateur camerawork and the realism inherent in deadpan humour and casual stocism towards an otherwise extra-ordinary phenomenon works in the film's favour. The creature itself is solidly animated, conjuring comparisons to Pan's Labyrinth or Jackson's Lord Of The Rings.
Whilst there are hints of irreverant social commentary, the message is somewhat lost in the build up of a concept that never quite gets its beastly foot off the ground.
Troll Hunter possesses some smart ideas but falls victim to its own hype. Elevating expectations only to under deliver. A misleadingly scary, action-packed trailer and ominous taglines, the actual pace of the final product fell flat. What resulted was a quasi-nature documentary that, as it hit the midway point, dragged lethargically towards an underwhelming conclusion. Not sure whether it was a satire, comedy, horror or fantasy, and inability to root itself in one of those genres led inevitably to its inability to execute any of them particularly well.
Think Cloverfield without the thrill and Where The Wild Things Are without the charm.
Comments