King of Devil's Island (2011)

King of Devil's Island (2011)

Stellan Skarsgard delivers the goods in a bleak historical drama

The Very Best

8.0

Movie

France, Norway
Georgian, Norwegian, Swedish
Action, Drama
2011
MARIUS HOLST
Benjamin Helstad, Ellen Dorrit Petersen, Frank-Thomas Andersen
117 min

What it's about

Norwegian winter, 1915. On the island Bastøy, outside Oslo, a group of young boys aged 11 to 18, are held in an institution for delinquent youth, notorious for its sadistic regime. One day a new boy, Erling, arrives, determined to escape from the island. After a tragic incident, he ends up leading the boys in a violent uprising. When the boys manage to take over the island, 150 soldiers are sent in to restore order.

The take

This gorgeous Scandinavian movie is based on a true story and stars the ever-reliable Stellan Skarsgard.

He plays the governor of a strict youth correctional facility in Norway in 1915. The arrival of a feared kid kickstarts events that are very famous in Norway but little-known elsewhere: an uprising within the facility that will eventually require the army to get involved. A strong movie with stellar (Stellan) performances.

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