THALE (2012)

THALE (2012)

So if you follow indy films at all you know that we are getting a lot of stuff that is Scandinavian. THALE falls into the horror, thriller genre. It could have been reduced to 45 minutes and created nearly the same depth we got which would have probably stopped me from almost slipping into a coma. Instead we are given what seems like an hour of talking and two guys investigating a house where a murder has taken place. There is also about as much throwing up as there was in the Family Guy epitaph episode which is not only completely un-necessary it’s pretty freaking annoying. Underneath all that this film is actually pretty clever. Based on Norwegian folklore this movie is about a huldra (really skinny hairy woman with what pretty much looks like a cow tale). Only the main character in the film is more human like because she has  been kept in a locked room for years and hasn’t had exposure to her kind. The sets are loaded with creepy anatomy articles and rotten everything giving the film more sense of dread which fits nicely with the flashbacks and abuse that has been going on. The huldra is nude a lot but the director doesn’t seem to be going out of his way to flaunt that as much as some cheesier films might have (which translates to most of the nudity is implied).

Ultimately this was pretty critically acclaimed but I won’t be going down that road. I am not going to say it doesn’t feature some decent acting, but you will have to struggle through the monotone readings of the English dubbing and extremely elongated dialog. The effects for a low budget film are pretty commendable for the most part and the ending is more satisfying than the beginning and the middle because it’s more of what we thought we were getting going into it.

Thale also contains some overtones basically stating that you shouldn’t mess with nature or things that are trying to hide. So all those bigfoot hunters, troll hunters, fairy hunters, you can all just eat it according to director Aleksander Nordaas ( a dude who directed a bunch of stuff you will never ever see).

This film gets a solid 2 out of 7. Rating Definition : 2 out of 7 – EHH, this movie was not good and you know it. You kind of wish you hadn’t paid to see it or allowed that chick in the deli to talk you into taking her. Once the bad taste in your mouth is washed out, you won’t think this is the worst movie ever, but you will think it was close.