Norwegian folklore turns out to be real when Leo and Elvis encounter a girl called Thale in a basement. A regular cleaning job turns into a struggle for survival, while they're trying to figure out what or who Thale is. Could Thale be a huldra? A seductive forest spirit who appears from the front to be a beautiful young woman, but who also has a cow's tale and whose back appears to be like a hollowed out tree. The huldra has been known to offer rewards to those who satisfy them sexually, while death to those who fail to do so and are also prone to stealing human babies.
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best movie i've ever seen.
Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
If you enjoy dark fantasy or brooding and atmospheric horror films, then this supernatural tale will be well worth your time. Leo and Elvis may not be the most engaging characters, but they are believable, and you don't find yourself cheering for their demise as so often in horror flicks in which the protagonists are anything but worth your empathy and time. Thale steals the show--Silje Reinåmo owns her role as a mysterious woman held captive; she conveys more by not uttering a word than any of the other characters do--and I doubt that the English subtitles did the dialog much injustice. The mystery of how and why she has been hidden from society is revealed gradually and tantalizingly--fortunately, the bulk of the film concerns this development, and it is nothing but great storytelling. The beginning and end do drag on at times, as is the case with many films that would be excellent at 45-50 minutes but feel the need to plod on for 90 minutes or more. I'm looking forward to Aleksander Nordaas' next offering.
I was encouraged to buy this DVD on the back of some of the reviews I'd read here and at amazon.com. I also really enjoyed Troll Hunter which compared to this "effort" is an Oscar Winner.I found Thale to be a total disappointment. The "special effects" are not special and look like they cost less than £500. The plot which is incredibly slow and at times hard to understand must have been written on the back of a cigarette packet. The characters, apart from Thale, speak and move at a snail's pace adding to the shear frustration felt in trying to follow the story. My advice is not to waste the 1 hour 15 minutes of your life in watching it.
This is an odd little (and quite short – 76 minutes) Norwegian fantasy horror film. A simple plot and a small cast lend a quaint feel to the movie.Two men discover a woman (Thale) in the basement of a place they are cleaning up, beyond that they try to figure out who or what Thale is, leading to a mysterious back story.There is some strange and dark humour thrown into the mix and given the relative length of the feature, not much happens but the plot development combined with a rather alluring performance from Silje Reinåmo make for an interesting watch.Inoffensive and quirky Norwegian film in a similar style to Trolljegeren (2010). Definitely worth a watch if you want something a little bit different to the normal Hollywood fare.
Based on a popular norse legend about a type of mermaid of the forests, "Thale" is, unfortunately, a little short of his enormous potential, because I believe that this folklore legend had the potential to yield a little more power and suspense to this movie, nevertheless, this fantasy product of Aleksander Nordaas is pretty good. He managed to create, with a limited budget, a slightly curious film that benefits a lot from the strong performances of the small but talented cast. The two main male actors, Erlend Nervold and Jon Sigve Skard, have to great performance, but the most mesmerizing performance in this movie belongs to one of the most promising stars of nordic cinema, Silje Reinåmo, which, without speeches or many screen time, was able to give her curious character a lot of energy and enigma. Unfortunately, Thale it is not given much space or time to grow and shine within a median plot that, apart from being practically free of active or violent sequences, unfolds, virtually in its entirety, within a basement, where Leo and Elvis try to learn more about Thale and realize what secrets and dangers hide behind this beautiful creature. The interactions between the three actors are a bit limited and, at the end of the film, we get the feeling that we didn't get to know very well the mysterious Thale or their violent "sisters" but, at least, we are given an good characterization of these mythological creatures that begin and end up a mystery to all of us, even though the movie give us a small explanation of its origin and some glimpses of their strength and real nature. It's true that the minimalist plot of "Thale" doesn't stand out the full potential of the legend that is in the core of the film, but it can't be said that this movie is a weak fiction/fantasy product, because it manages to entertain the audience and emerge us in a fantastic and tense world with some surprises. It's true that the plot should have focused a little more on Thale and should have also instilled a bit of suspense and action to this production but, taking into account the limitations and the essence of the film, I consider this "Thale" a reasonable cinematic product.