ZERO KELVIN (1995)

A.K.A.: Kjaerlighetens Kjotere

Country: Norway / Sweden

Genre(s): Adventure / Drama

Director: Hans Petter Moland

Cast: Gard Eidsvold / Stellan Skarsgard / Bjorn Sundquist

Plot

Idealistic poet Henrik Larsen accepts a contract to live as a hunter and trapper in the icy wilds of Greenland, where he stays in a secluded cabin with two other men.  He soon finds himself in a struggle with the group’s leader, Randbaek, an embittered man whose violent methods cause Larsen to fear for his life.

What I Liked

A character driven drama whose intensity is heightened by the dangers of its inhospitable setting, “Zero Kelvin” is capable of thrilling a wide ranging audience.  Really, the basis of the drama is one that filmmakers have been making use of for a long time.  A small group of people are confined in a small space to survive the dangers outside and wind up realizing that the real danger might be each other.  It’s a common theme in horror and thriller films.  However, the characters and dangers are rarely so effective as they are in “Zero Kelvin.”  The script is perfectly paced, the performances flawless, and the cinematography makes terrific use of the menacing landscape to bring a constant sense of foreboding.

Ultimately the true testament to the film’s strength is that all of these elements combine into a film that becomes ever more thrilling as it goes along, never letting go of the viewer’s attention.  The longer one watches, the more it works its magic until the audience is completely enthralled by this frost-bitten nightmare.

What I Didn’t Like

As mentioned earlier, the small-confined-group-turns-against-itself dynamic has been done countless times before.  This movie adds the extra contrived element of throwing together three men from very different backgrounds.  Randbaek is an old sea man, a grizzled killer (basically, Quint from “Jaws”); Larsen a love-struck poet; and Holm is the ultra-rational scientist.  One could read a lot into that.  For example, each character could be said to represent a different aspect of the human soul: hate, love, and thought.  That kind of easy simplicity makes the film open to interpretation and therefore likable for a broad audience (including this viewer).  But I must admit it did come off as over-simplified, the differences between the characters sometimes too cliché.  Thankfully, it all works so damn well that none of that really mattered to me until I had finished being mesmerized by every moment of the film (at least every moment after Larsen gets to Greenland) and went to write this entry.

Most Memorable Scene

*spoiler alert*

For much of the film, Holm does his best to remain neutral between Larsen and Randbaek.  When the hatred between the pair gets physical, Holm finally acts.  Those actions do not bring the peace he hopes for, but instead up the ante for the animosity inside the cabin.  Things are never again the same between the three of them and each man is now locked on the path to his destiny.  Holm’s finally taking action, then, is the true turning point of the film, taking things from a battle of wills to a life-and-death struggle.

My Rating: 4 out of 5