Narvik: Hitler's First Defeat (2022) User Reviews

A competent war drama

[grahamf-55542 · 7/10 · 13 February 2023]

While looking at what others said on here I found one outstanding and very comprehensive review. I completely agree with everything said by Erik_Surewaard and hope he won't mind me quoting part of his to make up the word count. I strongly recommend reading Erik's comments in full.

If I read quite some of the other user reviews, I see many complaints about the movie being too focussed on the story of one family. This instead of on the battle itself. And I can partially agree with those comments. But to use this as the main argument for giving this movie an IMDd rating of only somewhere between 1 to 4 stars, is totally unjustified. This is like saying that "Titanic" is a bad movie because it focusses to much on a love story between two people...

I personally think that "Narvik" succeeded pretty well considering its relative meagre production budget of 'only' 63.2 million Norwegian Kroner, equalling around 6.4 million US$. So before drawing conclusions, let's first take a look at a comparable... For instance "Das Boot" - a WW2 movie that was made in germany over 40 years ago - had a budget of 15 million US$. And mind you, those are 1981 dollars! So it seems that a budget of 6.4 million is peanuts if you want to make a WW2 movie.

A pretty decent WW2 movie which kept me interested from start to "The End"...

[Erik_Surewaard · 7/10 · 24 January 2023]

If I read quite some of the other user reviews, I see many complaints about the movie being too focussed on the story of one family. This instead of on the battle itself. And I can partially agree with those comments. But to use this as the main argument for giving this movie an IMDd rating of only somewhere between 1 to 4 stars, is totally unjustified. This is like saying that "Titanic" is a bad movie because it focusses to much on a love story between two people...

I personally think that "Narvik" succeeded pretty well considering its relative meagre production budget of 'only' 63.2 million Norwegian Kroner, equalling around 6.4 million US$. So before drawing conclusions, let's first take a look at a comparable... For instance "Das Boot" - a WW2 movie that was made in germany over 40 years ago - had a budget of 15 million US$. And mind you, those are 1981 dollars! So it seems that a budget of 6.4 million is peanuts if you want to make a WW2 movie.

So it is only logical that one needs to make difficult decisions with such a budget. And the first thing that needs to be realized, is that expensive battle scenes are very much out of the question. So I am pretty impressed that "Narvik" still contained some pretty good action scenes! A good example are the ground battle scenes that start at 50 minutes into the movie.

I think it was pretty clever to base the storyline on a family relationship between a husband, wife and her kid that live in Narvik. The husband - whom is a soldier that fights for the Norwegian Army - gives us thereby a good idea of the situation that the defending army was facing. And the wife - whom has to translate for the germans - provides us with a view on the considerations on the german side.

I have to say that the storyline could have been more focussed on at least the consequences that the battle had on citizens and the village of Narvik. At least they could have involved more families or people. I think it is indeed a bit to focussed on just the husband and wife.

What is very well done is to make the movie period authentic. The vehicles, uniforms, weapons and other props look all period-true. Combined with filming locations that provide us with excellent scenery, it really gave me the idea that it was World War 2 that I was looking at. And the CGI - where it was used - was also good. Large fires, bombed out areas, planes, ships... for me they all looked genuine. With regards to the planes and ships, it surely helped that they didn't give the viewer a close-up view. The large fires and bombed buildings - whom we could see way clearer - all looked very real.

Combined with some pretty decent acting, I therefore have to disagree with the users that give this movie an IMDb rating of 4 stars or lower. Taking into account all the above - and emphasizing that at no moment I was bored whilst watching the movie - I think that this movie deserves a score of 6.6/10. Just barely making a 7-star IMDb rating.

Seeing what is already possible on the meagre budget it had to work work with, I personally wonder what Narvik would have looked like with a budget of 3 to 4 times more. If I read that the initial idea was to make a mini-series, I think that we have here a big missed opportunity. Because all elements are available to create a mini-series that not only portrays events that are important to Norway and WW2, but that are also a must-see in any persons life...

Enjoyable WWII movie from a Norwegian perspective

[paul-allaer · 7/10 · 3 February 2023]

As "Narvik" (2022 release from Norway; 108 min; original title: "Kampen om Narvik" or "The Battle for Norvik") opens, we are introduced to the historical background as to why Norway declares itself neutral at the beginning of WWII, and yet Germany invades it. We then get to know Gunnar Tofte, a soldier in the Norwegian army, and his wife Ingrid, who runs a hotel and becomes an interpreter for the head of the German occupying force. At this point we are 10 minutes into the movie.

Couple of comments: this WWII movie is a nice change of pace. Did you know that Norway was officially neutral when WWII broke out? Me neither. And why the Nazis invaded Norway anyway? I'm not going to spoil any of the plot, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out. I wasn't familiar with any of the cast, and it didn't bother me in the least. I really enjoyed the photography, done on location in Norway. Please note that the listing of this here on IMDb as "Narvik: Hitler's First Defeat" is inaccurate and never appears as such anywhere in the movie. Last but not least: I read that "Narvik" sold more movie theater tickets in Norway than any other movie released there in theaters in 2022.

"Narvik" bypassed US theaters, and started streaming on Netflix about a week ago. Netflix recommended it to me based on my viewing habits. Glad I checked it out. If you are in the mood for a decent WWII movie from a Norwegian perspective, I'd readily suggest you check it out, and draw your own conclusion.

Interesting war movie

[Luigi Di Pilla · 7/10 · 27 January 2023]

Here comes another important and interesting movie about the Hitlerian occupation in Norway during the Second World War. It shows accurately how the Nazi and the Norwegian opposition wanted to defend their territory.

The locations were beautiful and the costumes created with authentically.

It's a touching story and I don't want to spoil any details here. I just recommend to check it out on Netflix. The main actors did a good job and the director too. The combat scenes are well executed with good special effects.

The Norwegian locations are beautiful and they are just perfect to turn there this documentary.

7/10.

Not about the Battle of Narvik

[Karl Aksel · 6/10 · 14 February 2023]

Ok, first of all: this is a good movie on its own merits. It's got good writing, good pacing and is engaging for what it is. But odds are you're not going to like it if you know your history, and if you don't, this movie isn't going to teach you anything.

The problem, however, is that it tries to deal with two different subject matters at once. It tries to be about the Battle of Narvik, but it also tries to be about the fate of civilians - in particular it tries to show how people could be pushed to collaboration, even though there's only the one example. And this seems to be the main focus of the movie. Had the title been more honest, this would have been a better movie. We are only offered a couple of skirmishes to represent the actual battles, and these skirmishes lack any sense of scale. The landing at Bjerkvik, for example, is represented by a small handful of Norwegians along with 4-5 French and 2-3 Polish soldiers, fighting against 5-10 Germans defending a single railway gun which looked to be no heftier than an 88. And this was the biggest engagement shown.

I don't think I saw a single British soldier in any of the skirmishes - there were a total of three - and the entire Allied operation seemed to hinge on the ability of a single woman to gather intelligence for two British consuls hiding in a shack. If that sounds silly it's because it is.

In the end, I give it a 6/10 because it's an engaging movie - but also quite the disappointment. Had they ommitted all the "battle" scenes, focused entirely on the female protagonist and her struggle between doing right by her family or right by her country, and not pretended this was a movie about the Battle of Narvik, this would have been a better movie.

An Engaging Nordic War Movie

[albertval-69560 · 8/10 · 29 January 2023]

This is a war movie but also a movie about relationships in wartime.

It's good to know about the circumstances that lead to the Battle of Narvik in 1940. Truth is, this film has a similar vibe to "All Quiet on the Eastern Front," the German movie that deals with war in the trenches in World War I.

What makes this film engaging is the performance of the main character Ingrid. She portrays a Norwegian hotel staff who's fluent both in German and English, and is tapped to interpret both sides during their meetings prior to the outbreak of hostilities, and who remains as interpreter for the Germans when the conflict begins. She has to deal with the consequences of this role. She's convincing in here, and the viewer avidly waits for the outcome of her choice.

Kristine Hartgen is a competent actor. She's able to bring to the screen the angst that Ingrid feels as she struggles with her situation. The viewer empathizes with what she has to do for the sake of a loved one.

Carl Martin Eggesbo and Henrik Mestad whom we saw in Occupied (Okkupert) lend strong support to a great story.

The fight scenes are credible. Cinematography is excellent.

Again, this film like other worthwhile war movies before it, clearly brings to the fore the ugliness of war. Man has yet to find a better way to settle differences and to rein in his impulse to dominate and subjugate others.

Not a war movie but a story set during war and well worth viewing.

[patcal · 7/10 · 17 February 2023]

With all the nonsensical and puerile movies coming out of Hollywood I rely on the Europeans to provide a steady supply of high standard and interesting productions and nobody does it better than the Norwegians.

I didn't know anything about wartime Narvik but, as a bonus for viewing it, this movie is an open invitation to the viewer to go look it up and discover what actually happened there during WW2 and it is a truly shocking but fascinating story.

The movie itself never lets up in its intensity. Never a dull moment I was thoroughly engaged right up to the last frame.

Now that I know the true story of Narvik I could nitpick but, in doing so, it would not detract one iota from the fact that this was a film that I would highly recommend.

Excellent acting, cinematography and music.

Dubbed dialogue, to me, is unreal so I always watch such features with subtitles..

A poor mash up of fine cinematography

[andrewrx-22185 · 5/10 · 28 January 2023]

This movie deserves 5 stars. It is watchable from beginning to end, but won't bring you anything more and forgettable with little to no value to talk about with those who have watched it too.

The battle for Norway of course was a note worthy, but seldom spoken of part of history as far as the timeline during the Second World War. This movie did little justice to bring any change to that.

The acting was fine from many of the main charactures, namely Kristine Hartgen, who played Ingrid Tofte. On an equal note, some of the acting seemed to be done by members taken from an after work/school acting club i.e. At least they knew not to look directly at the camera.

I can also say the cinematography was beautiful and location settings were superb. Unfortunately, where so many movies with great effects and stunning shots fall short, the story. The plot is the same as so many films which have come before, it is almost a clichè; likely so that they have something to begin filming with as quickly as possible and quite frankly, with a story line so unoriginal, you would think they might be able to get it right, or at least create it in such a way you can admire the finer details they put in. Not here though.

On a plus, which does deserve credit, the Germans were German, the Norweigens were Norweigen, the British were British and the French were French.

So, if you have found yourself scrolling for an eternity, mindlessly trying to find something to watch and about to give up, consider giving this movie a go... or don't, you will have missed nothing.

Better than most

[sharptowntiny · 9/10 · 24 January 2023]

I see "decent" reviews, but I feel like I just watched a 9/10 war movie that can almost reach Saving Private Ryan in its scope and production. The lighting and cinematography were top shelf, the acting wasn't Oscar-worthy, but confident, restrained and noteworthy. It contains the best foreign language dubbing I've ever experienced, you practically don't even notice it, the CGI transparent, the writing and editing exemplifies how to move along with a balanced pace of slow and fast, with story easy to follow and enough tears at the end to stir the heartstrings. Enjoyable and riveting.

Well done.

Too many story lines, not very realistic

[bjornerikpedersen · 4/10 · 20 January 2023]

I read somewhere that the budget of this movie was big, but it didn't show. There were some remote CGI ships on fire, but most of the battle scenes had surprisingly few people. The French saviours was a group of three soldiers, and a battle was simply won by taking out one, single machine gun station.

Also, this 110 minute long minute movie had way too many story lines, many felt a little "spur of the moment" thinking on the set, "just to make it a little more interesting".

My main take about this movie going out of the movie theatre was probably that I didn't really believe the main take of it. Sure, I have read about the real events of Narvik in 1940, which must have been terrible for the people living there. Plenty of drama to be had without making up one.

Attempt to display Emotional prospective to the war story of Narvik

[mohitjagtap · 7/10 · 2 April 2023]

I see many reviews commenting on the historical accuracy of the film. Rather I will be reviewing the film on its quality and technical standards which are found to very good. The plot of the film is what I liked the most. In fact, there are short mini stories in the same timeline and movie often switches brilliantly between them. Background score could have been better. Movie succeeds in maintaing the tension between the events. This films qualifies the genre of being war action,drama, bit of a thriller and pinch of romanticism in it. I too feel that maybe due to budget limitations, the films scope was limited to very limited locations which could have been a slight better.

A comfy Netflix evening learning history and seeing Hitler defeated.

[JohnDeSando · 25 January 2023]

"The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." G K Chesterton

The Netflix WWII film, Narvik: Hitler's First Defeat, captures the essence of conflict through the eyes of a tiny Norwegian town that, in 1940, faced the difficult choice between saving their town (what is behind them) through collaboration with Nazis (what is in front of him) or fighting a covert battle with them till the allies arrived to help take the town back. The decision and the fight are not easy, and it is, as they say, hell.

The hellacious circumstance in this quiet, thoughtful war drama, comes not from the bullets, which are many and from both sides; it is rather the choices that must be made, such as Ingrid's (Christine Hartgen) about saving her little boy's life by disclosing English soldiers' hideout. Like the oppressed Mennonite women of Women Talking, the choices can bring calamity no matter the side that's chosen.

Although this is the first battle Hitler loses to determined freedom fighters, he has plenty of victories before his ultimate loss. The title has a touch of black comedy, little of which is there in the screenplay. Yet, Narvik: Hitler's First Defeat discloses in a most serious way, the small dramas within that are the heart of the strife.

Besides Ingrid's dilemma, the Nazi Konsul Fritz Wussow (Christopher Bach) is torn by his attraction to Ingrid and her value as informant who can betray Norway. Major Sigurd Omdal (Henrik Mestad) sends his boys against formidable odds. However, this town's iron ore is the object of both allies and Nazis and worth fighting for.

And so on, it seems, as no one is immune from responsibility for tragedies. The value of this unassuming war film is its ability to universalize the experiences of war, especially when they are confined to your town with small hope of deliverance. Good war films (Think All Quiet on the Western Front and Saving Private Ryan, for instance) demand thoughtful consideration of mankind's evil and its good, as Narvik does.

hitler's first defeat

[ksf-2 · 6/10 · 24 January 2023]

A port on the northern coast of norway is the source of strong european iron. Up until now, norway has tried to remain neutral, but that will no longer be possible. The allies are moving to block germany from obtaining the iron from narvik harbor. So the germans arrive in force to protect their source of iron. But there's a troop of norwegian soldiers holding out, trying to protect the city. It's up to them and the townspeople to stop the germans from a complete takeover. The details of the battles are well laid out in wikipedia dot org. This film is described as a "historic drama", so clearly it's someone's vision of what might have happened. And a lot of it is told in captions, rather than action. This story focuses on one family, where the wife must make decisions about how far she will go to help her own family. What's more important is that it was the first military loss for hitler in a foreign country. And some of the english dubbing is a bit strange; obviously, it was wartime, but some of language and tone are a bit over the top. It's okay. The drama of this one family was probably pretty common, in the fight against invaders. Directed by erik skjoldbjærg. It is good to see a norwegian film about a piece of history that I did not previously know.

The last 30 minutes are really worth it

[JoeBuck666 · 8/10 · 25 January 2023]

Yes, it could have done so much more and gone way beyond. But I don't know if that would mean "better". There were plenty of spaces for more facts, arcs, narratives and things to be explored. But I think the fact that they weren't there was by design. Actually the movie made me cry and care about the characters in the end. So I think this is "mission accomplished" isn't it. It has that straightforward cold hearted but yet gentle and beautiful touch of morality and love that Nordic war movies always seem to have. The last 30 minutes are really worth it. And pay attention to the kid, the protagonist couple's kid.

What would you do?

[keikoyoshikawa · 6/10 · 20 May 2023]

"Kampen om Narik" or Battle for Narvik is about difficult choices made under duress. It is about making decisions that you know will get someone killed vs saving the lives of others. It is about choosing loyalties - but not between political ideologies but between family and everyone else.

Essentially, it is not so much a war movie as it is a drama with war as its setting. The wonderful thing about this movie is that it puts you right in the shoes of the main characters making these difficult decisions. It doesn't judge its characters or their choices, and neither should the audience.

Unless, of course, you've been in similar situations. The actors are ok to good, with Kristine Hartgen a particular standout as Ingrid Tofte. It is through her eyes that we see most of the story played out. Carl Martin Eggsbo, who plays her solider husband, is good, too.

Hitler's first defeat

[OJT · 8/10 · 27 December 2022]

"Kampen om Narvik - Hitler's første nederlag" (in English: The Battle of Narvik - Hitler's first defeat") directed by Erik Skjoldbjærg had a hard time reaching the cinemas, two years after first planned premiere,due to covid and then the eruption of the Ukraine war, but when it finally did it does to full houses across Norway.

The plot follows a soldier, Gunnar, and his family during the outbreak of the war, and the freeing of Narvik, a battle which kept going for 40 days, and we can feel the difficulties of war, with his wife obliged to help as a German translator.

The film is superbly filmed in locations Narvik, Drammen and Rjukan, and the sound is awesome.. the story manages to grip on several levels, and I found it both interesting and good, telling me history I didn't know about from before.

Another good Norwegian war movie, well worth a view.

Disjointed and maddeningly misleading

[ryangatto · 7/10 · 19 February 2023]

Overall, this was a fine movie in parts.

However, as a whole, it was lacking. It needed to either be much longer (a 4 part soap) or much narrower in scope and tighter in plot. Instead, we got a movie that painted with broad, sloppy brush strokes - perhaps a student copy of Guernica put on film - and cut with dull scissors - think trying to express emotion through length rather than quality. Perhaps the budget was too big for the producers so the director got greedy with time or perhaps the script was simply too long. The end result is too much but too little of everything - from battle, to character development, to scenery, to acting, to emotion, to historical accuracy, to story. Not exactly a curate's egg, but close (and probably depends on your mood at the time of watching). Not a bad showing, but see the Heavy Water War for a much better format and movie/show.

A quick note on the historical accuracy part, the whole narrative arc seemed quite unfair to our British friends - almost painting them as the bad guys due to their failure to perform in the movie (and when they do assist, people die because the English cannot make naval bombardment perfectly hit only the Germans). Much is said about the English not coming to our aid and "why don't the British come" or "why don't they protect us". This continues to the final throwaway end pre-credits crawl where Norway is abandoned by the British and French and, wait for it,... without being told. While there is a slim nugget of truth in this, it vastly ignores, well, the stark reality of the whole campaign (see, if nothing else, the death rolls). I'm all for telling one side of the story, but why so vicious in criticism of our brothers? And why call it "true"? The purpose of all this inaccuracy is lost on this viewer.

Not So Good

[thunderchild-66189 · 4/10 · 31 January 2023]

I was really looking forward to watching this film, and was hoping for something more historical. The British played a big role at sea and on land, and sadly this was completely missed out, it focused instead, mainly on the French and Polish armies, for some strange reason, sadly.

But this was more based on a Norwegian family A shame really, especially if you're looking for something more true to history.

So for those looking for the usual heart wrenching family type films, then this is for you. I watched the dubbed, subtitled version, which was okay. In my opinion, don't bother watching it.

Not much fighting but a fun watch

[jimengels · 6/10 · 23 January 2023]

Narvik is not an typical war movie like midway, saving private ryan or fury. The fighting scenes are not as heavy as i expected from a movie made about Narvik. The fighting scenes were bad because there wasn't much gunpower the only heavy fire in the movie is when a ship shoots at something on the land (no spoiler)

Nevertheless Narvik is a fun watch if you want to watch a romantic war movie. As it is about a married couple with a son and a father who all have different roles in the battle of narvik.

I rate it a 6/10 because the visuals were very good compared to other war movies that came out the last decade.

Not bad, but some very dodgy sentiments make the filmmakers seem nieve.

[seanhancock-96482 · 6/10 · 28 January 2023]

Not a bad film, a bit twee but not overly romantic and some strange perhaps modern morals applied to the overall plot but what grated most in particular was the last little pieces of text about the British and French leaving them to carry on after the battle. This was really very incorrect. Dunkirk was happening during that period. Did the filmmakers expect the French and British to hang around!? It's a very narrow and blinkered view of what was happening in the rest of the world and Europe at the time and makes the producers/director look incredibly unknowledgeable about the history of that period at best.

Enjoyable and family Drama

[ddwjcgmy · 7/10 · 18 May 2023]

This story is very powerful on a terms of family first. She suffer and scarifies for keeping secret and saving every parties till her boy get hurt and sick to death. She need to scarifies to save her boy. When her husband get back and release that family first they left together.

I will truly recommend this movie for anyone how like war mixed with drama. The way how they write it, engage you deeply into the movie and let u thinks of your life and how you are save and relaxed. It also shows how parent might scarifies with everything on life to their little kids and how they might put their life's on danger.

the first battle Hitler lost. But instead, there is a deeper story.

[folk_egm · 8/10 · 24 January 2023]

A small form of World War 2 movie from Norway that has a different story from the real history of the battlefield where Hitler was first defeated. It focuses on the story of innocent civilians in Narvik who suffer the karma of the German-British war. Whereas Germany did its best to protect its citizens in times of war. While the British continued to attack the city until there were many victims. Which is different from the image of other movies in the past, and although we know at the end that Germany has lost But this isn't the real ending. There are more profound stories and great tragedies after that. Which the film ends with the facts very perfectly and is at the heart of this whole story.

I learned.

[W011y4m5 · 6/10 · 19 February 2023]

Despite not being particularly unique in its approach to the well-trodden war genre (directorially capturing scenes in a way you'd typically expect / associate for something set in this period), Netflix's new WW2 movie "Narvik" - to its credit - does thankfully provide something interesting for audiences to sit through, due to the fact that it defies conventionality by opting to adapt a lesser known piece of important history to the screen.

With similar films like "All Quiet on The Western Front" & "The Forgotten Battle" etc. I therefore do have to commend the streaming service for at least commissioning educational projects which help audiences see these infamous conflicts (spanning the 1910s & 1940s, respectively) through new perspectives (seemingly often overlooked ones), in order to usually prioritise the more recognisable events like "D-day" & "Dunkirk" we're already aware of, lensed entirely through the eyes of the victors etc.

In comparison to that, it's fascinating witnessing the tragedy of those who were instead defeated - equally deserving of acknowledgement, which this additionally provides.

The informative nature of the story does consequently provide an engaging purposefulness & ensures that the viewer's time is a worthwhile investment - because although the execution lacked anything memorable / distinctive, it still helped to ensure that the sacrifices made by those in the past will not be forgotten in the future. Maybe that's enough?

Different shade

[avindugunasinghe · 7/10 · 27 November 2023]

Narvik doesn't bring out the bloodlust of the Nazi expansionism in the usual terror inducing manner. Instead the story describes how human lives were overlooked by both sides and the real terror of the lives captured between war. The fear, darkness and uncertainty is signalled very well by the use of visuals and colour. Unrest brought by unavoidable war to the simple lives of non waring nations told well with perspective of Tofte family. Narvik's boldness in bringing up the questionable strategies of saviors is admirable. Great performances by the cast. Hissing of bullets and bombarding doesn't effect the emotional side of this great story of a dark forgotten time.

Family vs. Treason

[dang90 · 8/10 · 29 January 2023]

EN: This one was a decent WW2 movie focused more on the story of one family than the the real battle for the Norwegian town called Narvik. I would say the production quality is impressive when you look at the very low budget that was allocated. I particularly liked the CGI special effects, the cinematography and the locations where the movie was filmed. The message is a bit confusing at the end, because the unity of the family and the healthcare of the young child can be interpreted as a reason for treason. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who wants to know more about the first battle lost by Hitler.