Tuesday, August 9, 2016

THE WAVE: RETURN OF A CLASSIC GENRE



If you grew up in the seventies then you are well acquainted with the genre known as the disaster film. Oh sure, there were disaster movies made in the past featuring earthquakes and hurricanes. But in the seventies there were movies made that featured that as he main them with stories surrounding the disaster. THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE, THE TOWERING INFERNO, ROLLERCOASTER, METEOR, AIRPORT (1-4), THE HINDENBERG and EARTHQUAKE which not only depicted a disaster but featured special speaker systems in theaters to shake the seats due to volume and overuse of bass. It was the heyday of disaster films. When I read that a new disaster film was coming out on DVD I was interested. I’d enjoyed the ones from the past and was anxious to see how this one was. I wasn’t disappointed.

THE WAVE comes to us via Norway. Yes there are films being made outside of the U.S., start looking at them. The movie tells the story of a small village in Norway located in the Geiranger fjord in Norway that was flooded years ago when the side of the mountain slid down and created a tsunami as it crashed into the lake. Since that time seismic monitors have been in place to track the mountainside with an alert system in place to make sure people know if it ever happens again. If the horns sound you have ten minutes to leave before the wave strikes.

Geologist Kristian Eikjord has been a part of that team for years now. He and his family are right in the middle of leaving this town as he takes on a new job elsewhere. The last day he notices something odd but can’t quite put his finger on it. He returns home and begins final preparations for the move as his wife heads to work for her last night at the local hotel.

About this same time the team notices something strange is happening. A camera shows one thing but the instruments show another. Of course it ends up being a faulty system that fails to let them know the mountain has shifted considerably and the end result will be another tsunami in the making. They contact Kristian to see what they can do when their leader is lost and he sets out to move his family and anyone else.

As the sirens go off the townspeople head to the hills, literally, to escape the oncoming wave. Kristian drives there with his daughter but his wife and son are still in the hotel. As he attempts to rescue more people trapped on the hillside in a traffic jam he has no idea if the rest of his family is safe or not. Leaving his daughter with a friend he sets out to rescue them as well.

The movie is perfect for fans of the genre. We have the set-up for the disaster, the payoff with some great looking visual effects and a story that draws you in with a family to root for. Sure you might wonder why they didn’t check the equipment more often knowing the importance it had in the protection of this town but face it, budget cutbacks take place around the world. Instead push those moments of questionable logic aside and enjoy the movie.

The acting is well played by all involved and I’d love to say its standard for each of them but as I said at the start, this movie was made in Norway and honestly I’m not familiar with their actors. Should any of them make the move to Hollywood my guess is they’ll be headed to the top of the list after watching their performances here. And while Norway may not be as big as Hollywood it hasn’t stopped them from creating a movie that draws you in and has you rooting for the people of this village long before the actual wave hits. And no, that isn’t a spoiler. If you didn’t think it would hit after seeing the title of the film you weren’t paying attention.

I’ve said before that more people need to make the effort to watch foreign films to get a glimpse of what the world has to offer. This one makes it easy with an English speaking soundtrack. It lets you know that there is a wide world of film out there and not all of those foreign films are what some fear, the boogie man known as “art” films. So take a chance and watch this one and discover how disaster movies can draw you in, have you sad at various moments, cheering at others and rooting for characters you’ve just met. THE WAVE is a movie that just may make you change your mind about foreign films.
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