A “found footage” Norwegian horror-comedy which channels The Blair Witch Project and Slither while choosing trolls, of Norse mythology, as its subject, The Troll Hunter is a diverting, if formally banal, addition to the currently bulging “reality horror” genre. Its social satire is laboured and conspicuous, while the CGI of its monsters (by which the horror and, indeed, the “reality” of the film lives or dies) is unconvincing though, of course, a symptom of its budget constraints – this is a small, Norwegian production – which will, mercifully for visually and conventionally literate Western audiences, be rectified in the inevitable American remake (produced by Chris Columbus). Despite this, it is an interesting adjustment of the popular format which, though at times superficial, is also distinctly Norwegian and, for the most part, skilfully and seamlessly executed.
Words: Oisín Murphy
