Really Surprised!

Excellent, a Must See

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

"Trollhunter" finds a unique niche within the "found footage" subgenre that allows it to mostly overcome its central gimmick of pretending it's made from real footage - it's Norwegian and it focuses on trolls.The cultural bent to this story can't be underestimated. A hunt for trolls in North America just wouldn't work. Norway's remoteness, and that troll lore originates from that part of the world, adds distinctive character and the subtle notion of "if it were true, wouldn't it look something like this?"The film follows college trio Thomas (Glenn Erland Tosterud), Johanna (Johanna Mørck) and Kalle (Tomas Alf Larsen) tracking down an infamous bear-hunter named Hans (Otto Jespersen) for a school project interview. When they pursue him too closely, however, they discover that he's actually hunting trolls, which not only exist, but seem to be breaking out of their territory and into human domain more than usual of late.Filmmaker André Øvredal plays coy at the beginning until the troll discovery is made, and he really launches into world-building, explaining all the peculiarities of trolls (e.g. the three main kinds, how they can be killed, their ability to smell Christian blood, etc.) Øvredal really embraces this, playing off the attributes of vampire hunter movies and generally trying to appeal to viewers who like to buy into the fantasy of it all. The story then unfolds partly like a documentary and partly like a horror thriller (and even a video game).The thrills and the entertainment value therefore come in the hunting scenes. The formula gets a tad repetitive, but all the world-building and myth-focused information that comes out of the documentary-style footage creates anticipation for the subsequent troll bout. With visual effects that clear the necessary hurdles for fantasy filmmaking, "Trollhunter" avoids more damning criticism of being cheap or falling flat in these pivotal moments.We hardly get to know the students, who are supposed to be the main characters in movies like this, and that keeps us feeling safely distant from what's happening as opposed to right up in the action. We play the observer, not really putting ourselves into the shoes of these students discovering trolls are real (and very dangerous). On the other hand, Hans is a fascinating subject and emerges as the film's true main character. (He does get the most screen time, technically). The choice to paint Hans as a veteran who has been doing this a long time and has grown disenchanted with the work and the government processes in place to deal with trolls turns out to be the best creative choice from a writing perspective. Jespersen gets to not just play a bad***, but one with inner torment. Part of this character choice proves necessary from a functional standpoint because his attitude allows him to be okay with bringing the students along with him, but it also gives dimension to Hans in the way the best documentaries do with their subjects.Successful genre films often blend old or familiar stories and techniques with new ideas and that gives "Trollhunter" its freshness. So many films have been built on the found footage premise, or the monster-hunting premise, or the premise of imagining certain literary or mythological creatures are indeed real and "Trollhunter" neither denies borrowing from those sub-genres nor does it become too hampered by them. ~Steven CThanks for reading! Visit Movie Muse Reviews for more

In 2008, the filmmakers receive mysterious anonymous film material. In it, university students Thomas, Johanna and Kalle travel to document bear poaching. There have been strange incidents going on. Norwegian Wildlife Board head Finn Haugen dismisses the mystery. The group follows suspected hunter Hans and he confesses to be a part of a government conspiracy to hide the existence of trolls.The obvious comparison is 'The Blair Witch Project' with the faux found footage documentary. The main difference is that some people actually thought Blair Witch was real. It's still fun to have the real element and the CGI troll. The second half is too unreal with the unbelievable government conspiracy. It also becomes a bit boring as the story meanders. This has some good elements and a watchable first half.

I saw this movie on the Netflix index with a fairly high rating so I read the synopsis. After reading it and seeing a trailer I wasn't moved. Eventually, driven by boredom, I watched it and I'm so glad I did."Trollhunter" is a found footage film (which is one of the reasons I was reluctant to watch) and it is great. The title tells you all you need to know. Some college students catch up with a trollhunter during one of his hunts and they discover the truth. As they tag along with him they find out that trolls come in all shapes and sizes.Part of the lure of this movie is that the troll topic is still somewhat untouched. There were some awful troll movies before this which may make some apprehensive about watching this movie. If you are one such wary viewer, don't be. This movie is significantly better than Troll or Troll 2. The details about the trolls was well thought out. The action was the correct dose and the special effects were very nicely done.If you've already seen vampires, werewolves, mummies, and zombies, why not give trolls a chance?

Trollhunter is one of those rare gems that only comes along once in a while. You go into it expecting to pass a few hours and by the time the end credits finish rolling, you're still thinking "Wow that was great!"The movie follows a documentary style film crew investigating a recent string of strange and bizarre bear deaths in Norway. Whilst investigating, they start to follow a strange man who seems to know more about the situation than is being leaked to the public.The movie starts off at somewhat of a slower pace and really hits it stride towards the halfway point. Once they learn of the strange man's profession and subsequent hobby, the action picks up and the plot- line begins to take shape. The acting is believable and doesn't seem all that forced. The effects for a low budget movie are VERY good especially with the climax at the end of the movie.My only problem with this movie is that the ending feels somewhat forced and cheap. Given what the characters have to endure and get through it feels like a cop-out.Overall a great little thrill ride of a movie and the special effects are pretty top notch for a movie of this size and budget. You'll be shouting "TROLLLLSKE" at the top of your lungs before you know it.