Norwegian Ninja (4 Stars)

In 1984 a Norwegian politician called Arne Treholt was arrested and tried for treason, having allegedly spied for Russia. This was the biggest spy affair in Norwegian history. This film attempts to tell the real story in a semi-documentary style.

In the 1980's there was a secret Nato organisation called Stay Behind. The purpose of this organisation, which had branches throughout Europe, was to influence public opinion and sway people to vote for political parties that would support a preemptive military strike against Russia. They did this by carrying out terrorist attacks in major European cities which could be blamed on Russia. The first attacks in Italy and Turkey were accepted as necessary evils, but when plans were discovered to blow up a Norwegian oil rig King Olaf of Norway objected. He created an elite fighting force called the Norwegian Ninjas to fight against Nato and preserve the Norwegian way of life.

Those of us who live in Europe and are old enough to remember the political climate of the 1980's will understand this film best. The atmosphere of cold war paranoia was oppressive. We were afraid of the Russian threat, but we also mistrusted our American big brother who was promising to protect us. In Germany the popular slogan was "Lieber rot als tot", i.e. "I'd rather be red than dead". The film shows Norway as the lone voice of reason in a world gone mad.

Click here to view the trailer.