Review: NORWEGIAN NINJA DVD

Relentlessly droll, Norwegian Ninja is a movie that could have very easily (and almost does, on occasion) overstay its welcome. Thanks to mixing a ridiculous premise (Norway--they have ninjas!), with actual historical events, with performances set to late 80's direct-to-video super-seriousness, writer/director Thomas Cappelen Malling's film ultimately sells the excess of quirk it's carrying, delivering a visually inventive, action-packed take on Cold War espionage.

Mads Ousdal plays Commander Arne Treholt, a fictionalized version of the Norwegian diplomat of the same name who, in 1984, was convicted of selling secrets to the Soviets. Norwegian Ninja purports to tell the tale of how this glasses-wearing patriot and leader of King Olav's personal ninja force would ever provide aid to our former enemies in the Kremlin. Along the way, we get nighttime raids, ninja training, secret bases, undersea combat, stealth suits, lies, deceit, death, and a resurrection, as Malling throws everything including the kitchen sink at the viewer during the movie's running time.

The film has an intentionally gritty look with a picture that's slightly "uglied up" with extra grain and washed-out colors in most scenes. During some some of the major effects scenes, miniatures are obviously used for that extra hint or ironic "we're all just messing around here" vibe. But again, what keeps it from going off the rails and into twee territory is how cool and collected the whole thing is. Ousdal, in particular--with his "Dad the CPA" haircut and glasses--is collected, calm, and appropriately zen at all times, completely selling his ultra-competent ninja master/commando role. Even the color palette adds to the success of the film's mood, never playing too "hot" or bright (although Norwegian Ninja is definitely a colorful movie).

I am curious about the politics of the movie, which have the U.S. in the background as the heavies attempting to drive Norwegian politics in the face of the Cold War threat. Is Malling serious here? The script gets a lot of play out of King Olav as this beloved, figure of Norwegian patriotism with the villains being government cronies of dubious alliances who seek to ensure continued fear of the Soviet threat by planning and carrying out clandestine terrorist acts (here, Malling cribs from another historical footnote: there were actually anti-Soviet groups executing domestic terrorist acts in order to discredit left-wing movements in NATO countries).The mood and the tone of it all seem to be sincere (as sincere as you can be with a comedy like this, I suppose).

Curious political motives aside, Norwegian Ninja is able to wring humor from its premise while providing some truly interesting visual elements (and music!) that provide a cool remix of Cold War history.

Audio and Video
Sorry, no HD presentation here, but maybe that's not all bad. The visuals on the disc--again, intentionally washed out and grainy--look especially so on larger screens. It gives you a better feel of watching a piece of pulpy recent classic cinema history.

Special Features
While we can't get the movie in hi-def, we can at least get some of the making-of material associated with the film.

3 Deleted Scenes
6 Bonus Scenes
6 Featurettes Including Interview with actor Mads Ousal, writer-director Thomas Capplen Malling, and producer Eric Vogel
Music Video
Trailer

Of these, the featurettes have the most added value, if you will. But there's not a lot worth revisiting in this lot, though.

Norwegian Ninja is available now from Dark Sky Films.