Troll – Review
I have a soft spot for the international offerings of Netflix. I am also interested in Norse mythology. So it was hard to pass up the Norwegian movie Troll on Netflix.
So what did I think of it? Well, the word that most comes to mind is ‘derivative.’ What I mean by that is that it fits perfectly the formula for the traditional monster movie.
Each character is recognizable as each of the types of characters in every other monster movie. There is the annoying politician who makes all the wrong decisions and that everyone hates. There is the helper who often points the main character in the right direction but never gets the glory. There is the geeky computer analyst who breaks the rules for what they believe is right. There is the old man that everyone thinks is crazy but has been warning people about the truth all along.
Even the monster is what we have seen everywhere before. He is a giant that somehow is undetected for the first half of the movie. He is dangerous but misunderstood. The react ion is always a mix of fear and compassion.
Now all of this sounds really bad. But Troll actually takes its copying of other monster movies and does it so perfectly that it almost becomes a work of art. It is almost a parody of monster movies but not quite.
There are some pretty cheesy moments, especially the helicopter “attack” on the troll. But some of the other battles are well done. It would not call this a cheap movie. It is well done and quite enjoyable,
There are plenty of movies that I think are a waste of time but Troll was a fun monster movie that reminds us of why we like monster movies.
