They expected it, but never prepared for it.
This is the latest natural disaster flick from the Norway. About an inland tsunami that caused due to the landslide near the lake that based around the mountains. Kind of fresh in that perspective, because as far I remember I haven't seen a movie evolve in this theme which is only a slightly differs from water reservoir burst and flood accidental concepts.
It's definitely a good watch, something I learnt from the Norwegian side of strategy to tackle the natural disasters. But the film was about what happens when you know the dangers and for some reason fail to the take action at the time, like maybe the human error or the negligence.
It was sent to represent the nation in the 'the best foreign film' category at the 2016 Oscars, but failed to make the progress. I kind of enjoyed it, but not that impressive other than the quality performances and the visuals. I feel the story was too short, I meant not the runtime. Technically, there was no story other than the opening few minutes.
It would have been better if it had the hard hitting emotions with the catchy lines and depth in all the main characters. Because when the film ends, you probably begin to forget it already, which usually won't happen for a Hollywood flick. That's the major difference if you compare it with the American films.
"That rock has stood for thousands of years and will stand securely for thousands more."
Okay, I agree Hollywood makes the best disaster movies. But other film industries as well catching up the trend, utilising the modern CGI and trying to match with them. Korea did the same with their first disaster film 'Tidal Wave' back in 2009. Remember this is Norways first step as well and somewhat excelled, especially in the technical area.
For unknown actors and the language, these films are restricted or depended on the domestic market only and this film did great by setting up a record for that year in the revenue. But films like these are rarely recognised in the international arena, other than by the critics through film festivals. What I think is they need to improve by commercialising the overall product a bit if they want the international market like once again saying what the Korean film industry did.
It opens with a simple drama that centres around a family from a small town who're facing the usual family issue. At the end of the first half, the disaster strikes, which was just around the 5 minutes. So you are going to miss those Hollywood propaganda like ships capsized or the falling skyscrapers. The usage of graphics were limited, but the later scenes were green screen shots. So I warn you to keep your expectations low.
The next half was the aftermath of the calamity where the people go look for their beloved ones. But it focused only the one family, and their involvement, which is more or less similar to 'The Impossible'. The supporting characters are the weak point in the entire narrative. One of the few things I like about this film was this one looks more natural and realistic.
I won't officially declare it a must see, it was not bad either. You might like it more than me. The movie is worth a watch other than often you encounter the influence of other flicks. You can't complain for those, basically, they are like a blueprint for a theme like this. If you're able to comply with pouring cliches, you could have a good time with it, in my opinion.
6.5/10