Max Manus: Man of War
Max Manus | |
---|---|
Directed by | Joachim Rønning Espen Sandberg |
Written by | Thomas Nordseth-Tiller |
Produced by | Sveinung Golimo John M. Jacobsen |
Starring | Aksel Hennie Nicolai Cleve Broch Agnes Kittelsen Ken Duken Petter Næss |
Cinematography | Geir Hartly Andreassen |
Edited by | Anders Refn |
Music by | Trond Bjerknes |
Release date |
|
Running time | 118 minutes |
Country | Norway |
Language | Norwegian |
Budget | US$5.9 million |
Box office | US$15.3 million |
Max Manus: Man of War is a 2008 Norwegian
The film's
Plot
After fighting the Soviets as a
Stockholm in neutral Sweden becomes a meeting point for Norwegians in allied military service. Here Gram introduces Manus to "Tikken", a married woman who works as a Norwegian contact for the British consulate, and the two develop a relationship. As the war becomes more brutal, many of Manus' friends lose their lives, and he starts to blame himself for being the survivor. On 16 January 1945 he and Roy Nielsen succeed in planting limpet mines, which sank the cargo ship Donau the next day. After the war, at a loss due to his poor prospects, he meets an imprisoned Fehmer and realises that everyone is just a victim of the meaninglessness of war.[1]
Cast
- Aksel Hennie as Max Manus
- Agnes Kittelsen as Ida Nikoline "Tikken" Lindebrække
- Nicolai Cleve Broch as Gregers Gram
- Petter Næss as Captain Martin Linge
- Kyrre Haugen Sydness as Jens Christian Hauge
- Knut Joner as Gunnar Sønsteby
- Viktoria Winge as Solveig Johnsrud
- Christian Rubeck as Kolbein Lauring
- Mats Eldøen as Edvard Tallaksen
- Ken Duken as Hauptsturmführer Siegfried Fehmer
- Stig Henrik Hoff as Police Captain Eilertsen
- Pål Sverre Hagen as Roy Nielsen
- Jakob Oftebro as Lars Emil Erichsen
- Ron Donachie as Colonel John Skinner Wilson
- Oliver Stokowski as Oberscharführer Karl Höhler
Production
The film received support from the Norwegian Film Fund on 3 December 2007, and filming started in February 2008.[2] With a budget of over 50 million kr, the production was enormous by Norwegian standards. Around 1,800 extras were involved, and around 2,000 people worked behind the camera.[3] To produce a realistic effect, parts of Oslo were transformed into an early–1940s look, a process that included flying the flag of Nazi Germany from the roof of the parliament building, for the first time in over 60 years.[3] Some large sets from Stockholm, Sweden, are sequences from the Swedish film 1939 which was released in 1989.
Historical debate
In the lead-up to the film's premiere, a concern was raised by the writer Erling Fossen that the story presented was a glorification of reality. Fossen claimed that the effort of the Norwegian resistance movement during the war was inefficient, irresponsible, and in some cases directly counter-productive.[4] The general response from academic historians was that, even though a critical debate about the role of the resistance movement was necessary, Fossen's arguments were overstated and largely based on ignorance.[5] Historian Lars Borgersrud has expressed stern criticism of the film's lack of adherence to history. For instance, the film portrays Manus fighting in the Winter War, a war in which Borgersrud claims Manus did not see action at all, despite Max Manus detailing this in his own books. Borgersrud accused Norway's Resistance Museum, which was assisting the film makers in a consultancy capacity, of distorting history. Historian and director at Norway's Resistance Museum, Arnfinn Moland rejected Borgersrud's accusations, stating that there is ample evidence that Manus endured heavy artillery bombardment and machine gun fire in Finland and that this affected him for the rest of his life, including dead and wounded in their unit.[6][7]
Reception
The premiere of Max Manus was an elaborate event, attended by King
Five out of six points were also awarded by Norway's largest newspaper
The larger papers based outside of Oslo were harder in their critique. They were generally impressed by the film's production values, but found it lacking in nuances in its depiction of the resistance. Many of them compared Max Manus to the Danish film
The film was seen by around 140,500 people on its opening weekend, a national record for a Norwegian film. The previous record of 101,564 was set earlier the same year by the horror film Cold Prey 2.[9] The film remained popular through its second week. During the Christmas weekend—traditionally a period of many high-profile premières—Max Manus was seen by 133,923 people, which corresponded to 55% of all cinema visitors. This was 100,000 more visitors than the next film on the list—Yes Man starring Jim Carrey.[22] In the first two weeks the film has been seen by over 317,000 people.[23] By 27 December 2009, 1,161,855 tickets had been sold.[24]
In 2009 Max Manus became the first Norwegian film ever to be chosen for a gala viewing at the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, Ontario.[25][26] The Toronto presentation would be the film's international premiere.[25]
2009 Amanda Awards
With seven
- The People's Amanda - directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, producers John M. Jacobsen and Sveinung Golimo for Filmkameratene AS
- Best Norwegian Film in Theatrical Release - producers John M. Jacobsen and Sveinung Golimo for Filmkameratene AS
- Best Actor - Aksel Hennie
- Best Actress in a Supporting Role - Agnes Kittelsen
- Best Screenplay - Thomas Nordseth-Tiller
- Best Cinematography - Geir Hartly Andreassen
- Best Sound Design - Baard Haugan Ingebretsen and Tormod Ringnes
Copyright infringement case
An illegal copy of the film appeared on file sharing networks less than two weeks after release. According to producer John M. Jacobsen, the recording appeared to have been made in an empty theater, which raised suspicion that a projectionist may have been involved.[28] The matter was reported to the police for investigation.[29]
References
- ^ "Max Manus" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Film Fund. 3 December 2007. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ "Aksel Hennie skal spille Max Manus". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). 3 December 2007. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
Thorkildsen, Joakim (6 February 2008). "Disse skal lage norsk krigsfilm til 50 mill". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 18 December 2008. - ^ a b Solheim, Erik Møller (13 December 2008). "Tidsmaskinen". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 18 December 2008.
- ^ Fossen, Erling (14 December 2008). "Motstand glorifiseres". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Retrieved 18 December 2008.
- ^ Nordstoga, Anders (16 December 2008). "Historikere støtter Sønsteby". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Retrieved 18 December 2008.
- ^ Rossland, Irene Elisabeth; Pettersen, Elisabeth Amb (22 December 2008). "- Bare tøv i Max-Manus-film" (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
- ^ Stokka, Pål (22 December 2008). "- "Max Manus" ville snudd seg i graven". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 22 December 2008.
- ^ "- Et viktig kapittel i norsk krigshistorie". Verdens Gang (in Norwegian). 17 December 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ a b Thorkildsen, Joakim (22 December 2008). ""Max Manus" setter ny norsk kinorekord". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 22 December 2008.
- ^ Kleive, Marie L. (17 December 2008). "Kan sette billettrekord". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 18 December 2008.
- ^ "Billedspesial". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). 17 December 2008. Archived from the original on 21 December 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ Haddal, Per (17 December 2008). "Flott,men friksjonsfri". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 19 December 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ Alver, Eirik (17 December 2008). "Garantert kassasuksess". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ Selås, Jon (18 December 2008). "Stor "Max Manus"". Verdens Gang (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 19 December 2008. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
- ^ Steinkjer, Mode. "Max effektiv Manus-film". Dagsavisen (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 19 December 2008. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
- TV2. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ a b Kolbjørnsen, Astrid (17 December 2008). "Vinglete jacket på nyanser". Bergens Tidende (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 19 December 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ Kolbjørnsen, Astrid (17 December 2008). "Max Manus skuffer". Bergens Tidende (in Norwegian). Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- Adresseavisa(in Norwegian). Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ Ålen, Kristin (17 December 2008). "Et manus om Max med for lite sprengstoff". Stavanger Aftenblad (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ Kleve, Marie L. (29 December 2008). "Max Manus knuste julefilmene". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 29 December 2008.
- ^ Johansen, Øystein David (29 December 2008). "Max Manus vant julen". VG (in Norwegian). Retrieved 29 December 2008.
- ^ Aune, Oddvin (28 December 2009). "Rekordår for norsk barnefilm". Retrieved 29 December 2009.
- ^ a b Ulateig, Frøydis Angard (15 July 2009). "Max Manus til Toronto". P4 Radio Hele Norge (in Norwegian). Retrieved 15 July 2009.
- ^ "TIFF Announces Galas And Special Presentations". Toronto International Film Festival. 14 July 2009. Archived from the original on 8 March 2010. Retrieved 15 July 2009.
- ^ 2009 Amanda Winners Archived 19 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Bjørkeng, Per Kristian (3 January 2009). "Kinomaskinist piratkopierte Max Manus". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Retrieved 30 June 2009.
- ^ Rossland, Irene Elisabeth (19 December 2008). "Jakter på Max Manus-pirat". NRK. Retrieved 1 February 2009.
External links
- Official website
- Max Manus: Man of War at IMDb
- Max Manus: Man of War at Rotten Tomatoes
- Max Manus at Filmweb
- Max Manus at the Norwegian Film Fund
- Nettavisen: Remaking of Oslo in 1940