Norwegian Disaster Film "Kraken" Sinks Under Mediocrity

The Norwegian film industry has recently shown a knack for producing low-budget disaster movies that aim to compete with their American counterparts. Films like "The Wave" (2015), "The Quake" (2018), and "Troll" (2022) have been noteworthy contributions to the genre. However, with "Kraken," Norwegian cinema seems to have hit rock bottom.

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Norwegians have been impressively adept in recent decades at creating low-budget disaster films that fit into the slightly too large shoes of American studios.

Director Pål Øie, known for "Tunneln," fails to leverage the mythical dimension of the Kraken, instead delivering a dull and predictable story. The film attempts to compensate for a lack of suspenseful scenes with moralistic pronouncements about humanity's need to listen to the ocean before it's too late. This environmentalist message, while relevant, is delivered in a heavy-handed manner that detracts from the narrative.

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But with "Kraken," it goes to the bottom with crew and all.

While Øie manages to build some tension before the creature's appearance, reminiscent of "Jaws," the suspense quickly dissipates when the Kraken is revealed. The creature, a massively oversized mollusk, lacks the inherent menace required for a compelling antagonist. The special effects are clumsy, and the acting is largely uninspired, with actors appearing merely stunned. From a Norwegian perspective, "Kraken" represents a missed opportunity to blend local folklore with a thrilling disaster narrative, ultimately sinking under the weight of its own mediocrity.

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Even though the film is named after the legendary Kraken, which is said to have rested on the fjord's bottom for thousands of years, director Pål Øie never utilizes the mythical dimension.