First I think it is hard for a Norwegian living in Oslo to have an objective view on this movie. The way it manage to recreate an 1940-environment is so stunning it makes you forget many of the other elements in the movie.
I think the weakness of "Max Manus" is how it starts out, the part I like to call "Before returning to Norway" which is all the scenes from the start thru-out the last scene in Scotland. The first part of this section is the flashbacks Max is having from the hospital-bed, this scenes are chaotic, and gives you the feeling of rushing thru the story without there being any meaning. The only thing that makes a coherence in those scenes is the voice-over. Also how the relationship between Max, Gregers and Sønsteby starts out is not shown, we just suddenly see them walking together on "Karl Johan".
We do not see how any of the relationships in the "Oslo-gang" starts out. I would like to see just one scene which shows how random civilians join the resistance group . Also the "Oslo- gang" is not presented as complex as it probably was, you never really understand how the network works.
Then after Max returns to Norway the second, and the last, part of the movie starts. The level of emotion and intensity increases and the acting gets much better, even though the dialog never reaches Hollywood stander. The relationships between the characters are really beautifully presented, pointing out the relationship between Max and Tikken and Max and Gregers.The way the war in Finland is used as a nightmare and a violent element in the mind of Max is perfectly melting in to the story, and gives the movie a complex human impression.
The use of shaking steady-cam close-ups with changing focus is amazing, the way the use of it increases thru the movie creates a growing thrill as the story builds up. This technique of camera-use also gives the movie a revolutionizing form of realism, that I have never seen before.
The greatest scene in the movie I personally think is the scene in which Gregers gets killed. It got a feeling of helplessness and an intense atmosphere which I never felt in any other movie scene. Most of the dramatical sequences in the second part of the movie really reaches an high international stander.
What I miss with this movie is the depressing feeling WW2 probably had. That gloomy feel which "Flammen og Citronen" got. The colors could be much darker and the story could be moving slower.
In the end I must say that it is sad that so few have given any reword to "Krigerens Hjerte" which is a great Norwegian WW2 movie.
P.S Aksel Hennie rocks as Max Manus!
I think the weakness of "Max Manus" is how it starts out, the part I like to call "Before returning to Norway" which is all the scenes from the start thru-out the last scene in Scotland. The first part of this section is the flashbacks Max is having from the hospital-bed, this scenes are chaotic, and gives you the feeling of rushing thru the story without there being any meaning. The only thing that makes a coherence in those scenes is the voice-over. Also how the relationship between Max, Gregers and Sønsteby starts out is not shown, we just suddenly see them walking together on "Karl Johan".
We do not see how any of the relationships in the "Oslo-gang" starts out. I would like to see just one scene which shows how random civilians join the resistance group . Also the "Oslo- gang" is not presented as complex as it probably was, you never really understand how the network works.
Then after Max returns to Norway the second, and the last, part of the movie starts. The level of emotion and intensity increases and the acting gets much better, even though the dialog never reaches Hollywood stander. The relationships between the characters are really beautifully presented, pointing out the relationship between Max and Tikken and Max and Gregers.The way the war in Finland is used as a nightmare and a violent element in the mind of Max is perfectly melting in to the story, and gives the movie a complex human impression.
The use of shaking steady-cam close-ups with changing focus is amazing, the way the use of it increases thru the movie creates a growing thrill as the story builds up. This technique of camera-use also gives the movie a revolutionizing form of realism, that I have never seen before.
The greatest scene in the movie I personally think is the scene in which Gregers gets killed. It got a feeling of helplessness and an intense atmosphere which I never felt in any other movie scene. Most of the dramatical sequences in the second part of the movie really reaches an high international stander.
What I miss with this movie is the depressing feeling WW2 probably had. That gloomy feel which "Flammen og Citronen" got. The colors could be much darker and the story could be moving slower.
In the end I must say that it is sad that so few have given any reword to "Krigerens Hjerte" which is a great Norwegian WW2 movie.
P.S Aksel Hennie rocks as Max Manus!