The Wave Review
By David Kempler
Get Swept Away By The Wave
Disaster movies are churned out assembly-line style in Hollywood. At any given moment, you would have no trouble finding one to watch. During the summer months, you can usually choose between multiple cataclysms at your local theater. I wasn't referring to their usual level of quality, but it's a pretty sorry genre, overall. Most of them are a total waste of your time.
From Norway comes "The Wave", the first disaster film I've ever heard of from them. I'm not saying they have not made any, but if they have, they have missed my radar screen. Would they fall into the same abyss as the overwhelming majority of their American counterparts? The answer is a resounding no and yes.
In the small and breathtakingly beautiful town of Geiranger, a family is planning to move away because dad has gotten a new job in a large city in Norway. Dad is a geologist named Kristian (Kristoffer Joner), and he has been a very dedicated and meticulous manager in charge of an early warning center, whose function is to monitor the mountain for tremors that could serve as a warning to a potential earthquake and tsunami. No one is very concerned because it's been over a hundred years since a similar strategy last struck.
As Kristian finishes packing for the move, a couple of odd readings display on the equipment at the early warning center. The other employees assume it's nothing but it puts Kristian on edge. While it's unlikely that these readings point to anything meaningful, Kristian realizes that if it is a harbinger of impending catastrophe then the town will only have ten minutes to evacuate to safety. Since we know the title is "The Wave", we know what's coming.
While Kristian is trying to find out what is going on, his wife, Idun (Ane Dahl Torp), and their two children prepare to spend their last night in town at the hotel where Idun is employed. The stage is set for the disaster to play out, and despite director Roar Uthaug having only a 6-million Euro budget, the special effects are up to the level of movies with over a hundred million to work with.
The first two thirds of "The Wave" could not be better. The tension slowly builds at a marvelous pace. All of the beats are laid out near-perfectly. Add to that the fact that the natural beauty of the area is so breathtaking that I want to visit if I ever get the chance, and you have a wonderful mix of blissful scenery and edge-of-the seat nerve-wracking moments.
The last third is a slight letdown when the implausible heroics begin to take over, like in a Hollywood disaster flick, but because the buildup is so good, it's easy enough to forgive the inevitable de-evolution of everything. This one figuratively and literally comes at you in waves and if you are a fan of this type of movie, you must see it.
