The Ash Lad: In the Hall of the Mountain King (2017) User Reviews

Visually nice, entertaining, easy to digest.

[Finfrosk86 · 7/10 · 29 September 2017]

So, Norwegian critics have been pretty much butchering this movie. Which is a little strange. On the other hand, Norwegian movie critics don't typically like this kind of movie. No. Boring, dark, dramatic movies that no one (other than the critics) really wants to see, that's what they like! So when someone tries to make an entertaining movie, a movie that sort of breaks the mold, oh yeah, let's reign fire down upon it!

Anyway!

Askeladden (or Ash Lad as it is internationally) starts off really good. It looks great. I like the visual style. Very strong colors, (something critics have been complaining about), nice nature shots, some cool set pieces. I thought it suited the story very well.

It's very well paced, never boring. Has some actually pretty awesome scenes. There is especially one scene, or sequence that I just loved. It's really cool, and the rest of the movie can't quite keep up, because it's that cool. But that's my personal opinion of course.

The acting is decent for the most part. Some of the actors speak in a different dialect than they actually have, so for a language person like me, some lines are a little stiff. The script is not the best, but I don't think it's that important. This is a family movie, more for kids than adults, and I don't think the dialogue is that extremely important. (unlike other critics)

There are lots of references to different fairy tales, exactly what I wanted. There are also several effect shots, which I thought was pretty damn good. Maybe once or twice, it's not quite as good as it could have been, but that's a very minor issue.

I liked the first half or so the best, but all in all I was entertained. I hope this one does well in the theaters, because I want more!

Way Better than some of the Reviews

[bryanmartin1 · 6/10 · 31 August 2019]

Don't know why there are some really awful reviews or attacks on people who liked it. It's definitely not Lord of the Rings but you know that going in. It's a good little story that's well worth watching. I could see us watching it again sometime. It's clean fantasy for the family.

Very entertaining

[szandl · 7/10 · 5 January 2019]

I suprisingly enjoyed this movie. Dubbed but good. Cheesy a bit funny and not too serious. Brilliant landscape and pretty Scandinavian woman and good directing.

Great movie, beautiful mountain scenes

[jd_bugman · 7/10 · 4 December 2019]

They did a great job at building up the suspense in this movie! I'm glad they recorded it with English voice overs. Even if some of the lines seem like they were meant for the younger crowd I think it's a must-see. I don't mind the voice overs when the story is this good. It gives me hope that I can find other quality foreign movies that are re-recorded in English.

Really sweet movie

[ravenclaw_girlrules · 7/10 · 11 May 2020]

I love fantasy as a genre but I rarely watch it. This was a very wholesome movie. The plot is very basic and there aren't really any unexpected elements, but if you're looking for a solid fantasy film to pass the time, I'd recommend this.

Fun but too tropeful

[BigGuy · 7/10 · 7 January 2019]

First off, I have to say I watched this dubbed into English and I'm not sure how much of this movie gets lost in translation. I got the feeling there were some jokes and play-on-words that got lost. There are also a few references that likely make more sense in their native country.

As for the review, I thought the movie was quite enjoyable overall. Fairy tale stories are a hard sale though. The movie included too many tropes and too many fairy tales, all mushed together. If you go in just wanting to have an escapist viewing, then this won't be a signficant con for the movie. If this is something that really would nag at you, then best not view it.

I think one problem for the movie is the target audience. There are a number of rather disturbing/fightening scenes, that might make it inappropriate for younger viewers. However the overall tone is the kind of whimsical folksiness that appeals to children, and might turn off the teenage crowd.

I would file this one in the check-your-expectations at the door, sit back and relax kind of movie. Don't expect much, and you'll have fun with it.

Remarkable fairy tale style refreshing and fresh

[drystyx · 7/10 · 9 October 2021]

This is a very old fashioned fairy tale that has been banned for at least half a century, and probably an entire century, by the powers of Hollywood.

The censors didn't get to this one. It doesn't have the Hollywood formula of the usual hatefulness. This was written with love and wit.

It's very reminiscent of the better parts of Anderson and Grimm, without the Grimm racism.

It's very funny, and very entertaining, and thus hated by the Beavis and Butthead crowd that so often come here in this present age. Perhaps the day will come when that sort of hatefulness will be a minority instead of popular opinion.

This is how to make a film for the "non control freaks".

Retro Fantasy Adventure

[StuOz · 16 November 2021]

Fantasy adventure with a touch of Lord of the Rings.

Generally speaking, I don't review this sort of fairy tale stuff, but I do review modern adventure movies with a retro-feel and this describes The Ash Lad.

Seriously, take away the CGI dominated climax and this could pass as something made in the last century - which is good!

The Ash Lad is all about these flawed and sometimes amusing young men who walk the forest (outstanding location filming) on a quest.

No sex scenes, not too much crude language, no fast edits all over the place, no pretty boys - put this all together and you get something oddly refreshing! Hollywood could learn a thing or two from this movie.

For the record, I never liked the Lord of the Rings film series, so I guess this could be described as the other side of the coin to all that.

The Ash Lad is a movie for the whole family. Followed by a sequel in 2019.

Butchering the Norwegian Fairy-tales

[xlars · 4/10 · 21 December 2018]

That is the best thing that can be said about this movie.

For butchering the Norwegian fairy-tales it is. I mean; the Norwegian fairy-tales are strong enough on its own, without being spiced up with:

a spoonful of Harry Potter a dash of Jurassic Park a cup of Thesevs in the Labyrinth a pound of Arthurian legendary stuff.

I can't but ask why.

This poor excuse of destruction should never have been made, and deserves being butchered back.

Traditional fairy tale mashup

[gee-15 · 6/10 · 11 August 2019]

I started watching this film assuming I'd move on to something else but was drawn in by the beautiful and unusual scenery (I'm not familiar with the landscape of Norway). The storyline wasn't especially original but contained enough elements of the "modern fantasy film" and a traditional fairy tale to be interesting. Modern elements included anachronistic dialogue and injections of somewhat juvenile humor. The traditional fairy tale elements included episodic encounters with supernatural beings and a series of seemingly useless items picked up by the main character that later come in handy. (There was one item I'd totally forgotten about until came into play at the end of the film in an important way.) I also liked how the brothers ended up working together to accomplish their mission and learned to see their seeming incompetent brother in a different light. The film isn't perfect of course. Some of the dialogue seemed a bit clunky (but I was watching a dubbed version....I have a feeling the dialogue worked better in Norwegian.) The special effects are not bad (though not as slick as some American films) and don't distract. Overall, enjoyable.

Dumbed - Down Nordic Version of The Princess Bride!

[spookyrat1 · 5/10 · 16 February 2020]

Ash Lad is an inoffensive, comical take on old Nordic fairytales involving princesses, noble quests and mountain trolls. That's about it. Other reviewers on these pages comparing it favourably to The Lord of the Rings chapters are just trolling themselves and being frankly ridiculous in the process. A much better comparison is with The Princess Bride. Neither film takes itself too seriously, but Ash Lad lacks the witty script, the interesting sub-plots and the romantic chemistry between the Princess and her would-be-commoner rescuer of The Princess Bride.

What it does do which is somewhat different from the regular tropes featuring in this genre, is to have a hero, who's not that heroic and not even the sharpest tool in the shed. But he is a punter with a long-term goal, who is ready and willing to play the long game to achieve his quest, aided and abetted by his even thicker two brothers. Up against them, besides the natural and supernatural obstacles is a quartet of bumbling, stumbling villains, whose leader, Prince Frederic, gets most of the good lines.

Judged from other reviews on this page, I must have been lucky seeing an English sub-titled version of the film, as the dubbed version doesn't seem to win universal acclaim. The production looks quite good and makes great use of some spectacular location scenery, but don't expect any groundbreaking special effects in the CGI department. Again like the PB, Ash Lad is generally content to use miniatures, clever photographic angles, costumed capers and puppetry to achieve its supernatural content. The acting is sound, without being stand out and I think the production team erred a little in only having limited interactions between Princess Kristin and Esben. The script didn't really give them enough time to build up a believable rapport, before they were separated until well into the third act of the movie. It also just needed to be a little more cleverer with the dialogue which is frequently run of the mill, to be kind. A few more wickedly sexy lines like Kristen's last line in the movie regarding enjoying riding with her, would have gone down a treat with adult viewers of what is ultimately, not a lot more than a kids' film.

A supringly GREAT and unexpected movie experience

[ramez-rafat · 10/10 · 4 November 2017]

I went to see this film with two 10 year old girls and since I'm 50 year old male/father I had no expectation to like this film as an adult. However, to my great surprise, I found this film to be very good, full of hidden meanings (analogies to important things to do in life and things not to do), good story, great film production, great sceneries, great music, etc., etc. I will not tell more details to not make any spoilers, but can only say that this film is as good for adults as it is for children. I never expected a Norwegian children film to be this good! It can easily compete with the best Hollywood films!! This is the first time I write to IMDb, but this great story inspired me to write for the first time! I will for sure see this film again and again.. :-) ! VERY recommended!!

Stupid acting, but a great watch!

[AndyVanScoyoc · 7/10 · 3 August 2019]

I'm not sure about the whole fairytale part, as I'm newly discovering my Norwegian/Viking ancestry and am not familiar with Norwegian folklore (yet,) but from the film viewer standpoint, this is a cute movie.

A fun adventure and the scenery...oh my god if that is Norway, I want to move there!

Don't expect a Lord of The Rings calibur type film...more of a Princess Bride type experience, but just as fun.

Recommended if you don't nitpick historical accuracy, language/script accuracy for the time, costuming, etc.

Remember...cute and fun film, NOT historical documentary.

Keep that in mind and I think you'll really enjoy it.

It's pretty obvious 12 ringer reviews, 2 from people who had no stake in the movie

[kwq_e_500 · 4/10 · 2 February 2019]

Seriously? Could you have made it more obvious? A 10, 7, 9, all reviews going on about how incredible the acting was, the production values, etc. They either worked on the film or are related to cast or crew.

The 2 bad reviews were pretty spot on, well, at least the higher of the two. The acting was a bit stiff, the dubbing wasn't bad, but I would have preferred sub titles. The hero reminded me of Ron Weasley, only more accident prone and dumber. (Rupert Grint is brilliant, so not really fair), (and they blatantly ripped off the Marauders Map) the Princess was pretty unlikeable, no wonder all of the would be rescuers were after the gold reward, and not her hand in marriage, but she was straight out of Disney's "Brave", only not as appealing - and it's gotta be tough being 2nd to an animated Princess! The Prince wanting to her only because it's the only way to be the king was yanked straight from Shrek's Lord Farquaad, in motivation, stature, looks, even down to having a huge stupid brute as his henchman. Heck, they even took Shrek's swamp! Hey, wait a second, was Shreck based on a Norwegian folk tale? Hmmmm ......

OK, maybe it does only deserve a 3. The scenery was beautiful, so I'll bump it up to a 4 for that!

Watch with English subtitles

[edith-ed · 7/10 · 9 November 2021]

An pleasant fairy tale movie. Always watch foreign movies like this in their original language with English subtitles. The actors who dub the English seem always to be stilted. Even though you can't understand the language, the acting nuance is much better from the original actors.

Classic tale from Norwegian folklore

[Laiath · 7/10 · 13 April 2020]

It's the old 'fight the monster to save the princess' storyline but it's based on Norwegian folktales. It feels a little too simplistic at times but the scenery is breathtaking and the cultural differences interesting, which leads to quite an entertaining movie overall.

The beautiful Norwegian scenery has star quality

[greenbudgie · 7/10 · 1 March 2022]

I would say this is a nice film for the pre-teen to younger teen range of viewers. The story concerns a runaway princess who wants to avoid marriage to Prince Frederik. The prince goes in search of her but so does three peasant farming lads who want to save her from the prince and a big bad troll. The pleasing photography takes us through beautiful forests and a stunning fjord setting for the 'Abominable Swamp' sequence. There is a good magical sword retrieval scene at the fjord. There are golden apples and wood nymphs and the reveal of their false glamor magic. I have to admit I lost interest a bit when the film switches to the groping in the dark cavern sequence. Also I was a little disappointed with the troll when it did emerge from the dark. But the majority of the movie belongs to it's star on full show and that star is the beautiful Norwegian scenery. Just a tip for viewers who normally like to skip all of the end credits. When the Valkyrien Allstars start singing at the end of the story hang on a bit longer to discover the fate of a certain character before the end credits start to roll in earnest.

Enjoyable

[stefan-hosemann-778-306779 · 6/10 · 15 February 2019]

I never head if it before, but when I rented it on amazon for the kids I was surprised by a pretty fun and good movie. Although this movie is considered suitable for kids if age 6 and up I kind of found it's a little bit too scary.. nevertheless, since my kids are uses to even scarier movies, they say through it.

The scenery and the overall feeling reminded me of "Willow" or "Ronja". Pretty good acting (well, at least what you can tell from a dubbed version), good special effects and good directing. Amazing Norwegian Landscapes...

It was an okay film but...

[hecreatedthestars · 3/10 · 26 December 2018]

It was an entertaining film, it reminds me of different movies put together, such as Lord Of The Rings, Princess Bride, and Chronicles Of Narnia. But it isn't as good as any of those. The acting is okay not that great. It did have a couple of swear words. It may be scary for younger children so I would not recommend. It gets a three star for the acting, the acting was not as I said that great, the actors are what make the film enjoyable.

Entertaining Norwegian folktale

[mamawhoban · 6/10 · 15 September 2019]

We enjoyed watching this movie, even though it was somewhat corny The story, cinematography and acting were engaging We would not watch this one with children under 10

Ask the lad

[svenerik-hansen · 5/10 · 4 November 2018]

Norwegian actors. Say no more. Where is the script!?

Probably my best movie experience with the kids

[saevarjs · 9/10 · 12 October 2017]

I've gone to the movies with my kids countless times to see children and family movies... fortunately this time it was something else. Our movie experience was great this time, the scenes are beautiful, the movie is funny at times and a little scary at times... bust most importantly, it kept us entertained from start to the end, and that is a very rare thing when this family goes to the movies :) I get easily bored at almost all children/family movies and unfortunately, so do the kids, as more or less all movies have a "downtime" that make them restless and sometimes even wanting to go home. Askeladden kept us at the edge of our seats the whole time, which is a very... very rare thing... well done! :)

Lord of the Rings for Kids

[DLochner · 7/10 · 11 January 2020]

Depending on the look and feel, the movie looks pretty much like lord of the rings. A stupid naive boy has to become of age and follows a Journey through adventures, while his friends attending him.

What I really love about it are the spooky sequences with trolls - for kids al little scary, but maybe the sip of seriousness, that makes this movie suspending for 6plus children.

Dubbed, badly

[jimvandemoter-50236 · 1/10 · 26 July 2021]

This might be a fine film but I can't stand dubbed movies. I want to hear the original language with subtitles. I don't care if I need to read because I'm a very good reader. The original language gives the movie the feel the film makers wanted when they made the movie in the first place. For those who aren't good readers, learn to read. For those who are too lazy to learn to read I don't have any sympathy. I know my review might anger some people but too bad.

its made for the small ones

[ops-52535 · 6/10 · 22 September 2020]

With loads of brawl and growls this can scare the guts of a child lets say upto 10 yrs old, all the darkness and extraordinary long waiting game could bring intense experiences for the children

but not for me, the troll like grumpy old man, i will say this was a overblown up expectation of a folktail , more known for the music made by edward grieg that the actual fairytail is for Ola Nordman. had they tried to adapt the animated iconic movies made by Ivo Caprino, e.g askeladden og de gode hjelperne, or reveenka or guten som kappåt med trollet, that would have been far more folkloristic than this one.

i shall admit i did see this in a very daftly english dubbed version on a tv screen, and compared to the norwegian peasant language its pretty poor. a subtitling wouldve done it better. the actual take on the fairytail itself aint autenthic and diverts alot from what ive read. a waiting game it is and it dissapointed me with too little time spent with the actual troll

positive is the filmography, nice settings, good scenic views of norwegian nature.

negative is the poor acting efforts, the actors doesn seem ready at all on several occations, and the score couldve been based around the griegs composition all through the film, actually just really used ca 2 minutes in the film.that couldve been improved.

well its always a quest for money when norwegians make movies, so i do give a 6 star as a patriot, but not more. its a recommend to view with your kids.