Operation Arctic Fox - DVD

Film: Sweden in 1942: the country is not yet at war. But the invasion of the German Wehrmacht seems to be imminent. As a result, Lieutenant Aron Stenström's (André Sjöberg) small unit guarding a small outpost in the mountains on the border with Norway is also put on alert, and Aron has to put his wedding plans on hold for the time being. At first, all remains calm. But when two soldiers in the unit, including Aron's brother Sven (Martin Wallström), are discovered by the Nazis while trying to spy on the enemy, the little outing ends in bloody disaster. Against the orders of his superiors, Aron and his men set out for Norway to rescue his brother from Nazi captivity - a rescue operation that amounts to a suicide mission.

Director Richard Holm, who has directed such high quality TV productions as Verdict Revised - Innocently Convicted and GSI - Special Unit Gothenburg, has directed Operation Arctic Fox, a tense war thriller that attempts to capture the horror of a major war through a small story. While the cover of the DVD tends to suggest 80s war action like Secret Code: Wild Geese, the film is more dominated by moments of quieter tension. It is only in the last third that there are some battles and duels, which Holm has staged very effectively, but at times quite bloody.

The most important actor in the film is undoubtedly nature. The snowy landscape of the Swedish mountains and the Norwegian forests, which seems very threatening in its beauty, is captured in atmospheric images, which build up an oppressive and threatening mood, in which the actors can then act convincingly throughout.

While Holm uses quite a few clichés both in the drawing of the characters, as well as in the plot. For example, the head Nazi is a very template-like villain, who at times comes across as almost unintentionally funny and only conditionally threatening. The subplot involving Aron's fiancée isn't necessarily one of the film's strongest moments, either. And yet Operation Arctic Fox is not boring in any minute and offers exciting, engagingly photographed and solidly staged entertainment on a high level until the relatively open end. Worth seeing!

Image + Sound: The image, kept in predominantly cool colors, is very clean, but seems a bit soft at some moments, which is also noticeable in weaknesses in overall sharpness. Overall, however, the visual realization of the film is atmospherically absolutely successful. The sound can convince with its well-mixed dialogues and the coherent ambient sounds, here and there also provide some good surround effects for a little movement in the action. Good!

Extras: The DVD offers the interested viewer still a Making of commented by director Richard Holm and leading actor / screenwriter / producer André Sjöberg (about 12 min.), in which, among other things, the difficult shooting in icy cold is addressed. In addition, there are almost 3 minutes of quite amusing outtakes, as well as an alternative opening and closing sequence (approx. 7 min.), which can be viewed either with the film soundtrack, or with an audio commentary. These additional scenes originally formed the narrative staple of the film, taking place in the present day and resolving the film's more or less open ending. After a few test screenings, however, the makers decided against this bracket, but it's interesting enough to give it a once-over on DVD. Good!

Conclusion: Operation Arctic Fox is a tense war thriller that, due to its exciting story and the ominously beautiful snowy landscapes of Sweden and Norway, consoles over minor lengths and somewhat worn clichés. The DVD is technically well realized, the bonus material is scarce, but worth watching. All this makes this home cinema premiere on balance then: thoroughly recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp