Norway, WWII: A group of British and German soldiers find themselves stranded in the wilderness after an aircraft battle. Finding shelter in the same cabin, they realize the only way to survive the winter is to place the rules of war aside. At the beginning of World War II, a hostile chance encounter in the skies above the harsh Norwegian wilderness leaves two aircraft - one British, one German - shot down in a remote and isolated region. By strange coincidence the crews seek shelter in the same cabin. They must battle to survive the brutal winter in order to get back to the war - and to fighting one another. Although war has made them enemies, as the days go by animosity proves hard to maintain. Mutual need leads to unlikely friendships, and the rules of war must be put aside. I found this on Netflix streaming movies, it is said to be based on, or at least inspired by, real events. <br/><br/>In 1940 both Germany and Great Britain had an interest in Norway, for the raw materials for a variety of uses. And, Germany and GB were bitter enemies. When a crew from each nation shot each other down in the snowy mountains of Norway, their war plans quickly gave way to survival. <br/><br/>The three Germans and the two British managed to find the same vacant wooden camp high in the mountains at almost the same time. The Germans got there first, had pistols, so claimed the British as prisoners as soon as they found the camp. However eventually the British got the upper hand, until they all realized they needed to cooperate to survive.<br/><br/>Florian Lukas is the German officer in charge, Leutnant Horst Schopis. Lachlan Nieboer, which sounds like he should also be German, is actually English and he played the British officer in charge, Captain Charles P. Davenport. Now past his 'Potter' roles, Rupert Grint is effective as the other British airman, Gunner Robert Smith.<br/><br/>The story is mainly a serious one, of how enemies can learn to respect each other, and learn to work together for survival. But there are many funny scenes in it also. Almost all of the movie takes place in the camp, or just outside it, and with the 5 characters. <br/><br/>Good movie, not big or flashy, but a good story.<br/><br/>SPOILERS: In the end the Norweigens sent out a rescue party, they shot one of the Germans, and the other two were considered prisoners and were taken away. The British, being allies, returned to their assignments. The other reviews have highlighted the good and the bad about this movie. It is easy to see what the director was trying to achieve: the concept is a good one, some of the cinematography was excellent, some of the acting was first rate, the story was well told and the human element was explored with humour, subtlety and warmth. These are the reasons it's worth an 8/10.<br/><br/>Without the great storyline and the humour however, this would be a 4/10 movie because: While Strunk and Horst were perfectly cast, without exception, all the other actors, including Harry Potter's sidekick and the Norwegian interrogator at the end, were either average or poor. Davenport was positively awful and nearly ruined the movie…but get through this and some of the clunky bits, and there is enough here to make you laugh, cry and and feel simultaneously queasy! All in all a great story, plenty of humour and humanity but some shabby acting/casting. I'd watch it again though!!
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371 weeks ago