The film is streaming on Netflix now
A World War Two war film explaining the devastating way it unfolded for Norway has been praised as ‘thrilling’ by fans, as well as ‘deserving all the love.’
Narvik is a 2022 Norwegian historical war film about the Battle of Narvik in 1940, focusing on both the military conflict and the story of a soldier and his family during the occupation.
Directed by Erik Skjoldbjærg and starring Kristine Hartgen and Carl Martin Eggesbø, the film was released on Netflix in January 2023 and portrays the struggles of ordinary Norwegians and the country’s role in Hitler’s first defeat of the war. With so many films focusing on British or US soldiers, this film has been praised for giving another view about the horrors of the war. Narvik’s capture was the first significant land defeat for Hitler in the war.
Lasting 108 minutes, the film follows the fictional story of soldier Gunnar Tofte and his wife Ingrid, a translator who is forced to make difficult choices under the German occupation. The film has been highly praised as it highlights the dual nature of war, from the large scale military clashes in contrast to the personal stories of civilians forced to navigate the harsh realities of war and occupation.
Narvik tells the little-known story of ordinary Norwegians
It’s not considered an easy watch, but it has an impressive 100 percent score on film ratings website Rotten Tomatoes and the reviews speak for themselves.
One fan wrote: “Narvik is a thrilling, crowd-pleasing war picture. It deserves all the love that All Quiet on the Western Front has gotten and then some.”
Another added: “Difficult to fault. There should be so many more ww2 movies from the perspective of other countries.”
“Great movie and I don’t even speak Dutch. Yes the sub titles were on but after a certain point I didn’t need them I was so into the movie, the movie took over,” said a third.
A four star review wrote: “Pretty good and an interesting look at a small part of the war from a Norwegian perspective.” Another felt similar as they wrote, “A very good movie capturing the atmopshere in Norway leading to the Germans first defeat.”
Narvik is based on a true story
However it wasn’t glowing reviews from all viewers, as some viewers gave it just one star. One viewer said: “Not that much of a work as other masterpieces.” Another added: “Boring and bad. Usual Netflix movie.”
Whilst the characters in the film are fictional, the history behind the battles are true. Narvik, which had a population of just 10,000, was first captured with relative ease by German forces on 9th April 1940.
This led to a two month struggle from Allied forces to win back the town, with fighting initially ongoing until an Allied victory on 28th May, marking the first significant land loss for the Nazis during the conflict.
Unfortunately, the victory was not a long-lasting one. The withdrawal of British and French forces following the Nazi invasion of France allowed the Germans to once again capture the town on 8th June, with surviving civilians evacuated by local fishing boats before Narvik was heavily bombed.
To this day, the Battle of Narvik remains the largest ever thought on Norwegian soil. A Narvik War Museum was opened in 1964 while a number of shipwrecks remain visible in the surrounding waters and are a huge visitor attraction.
Narvik is available to stream on Netflix now.