A different kind of horror flick Thale tells a story steeped in mystery and evil that chills as it spools out to its mythical ending. Not your average production, this foreign film made in Norway takes its time as it draws you into the plot with some very good acting, direction and compelling cinematography. If you like films that are provocative and haunting Thale is now available on DVD.
The story opens with Leo (Jon Sigve Skard) and Elvis (Erlend Nervold) cleaning up blood and waste at a crime scene. Elvis finds the going rough since it’s his first one being called in by Leo after his regular partner was not available. The next day Leo gets called to clean up a mess at a remote cabin in the mountains where a man has been found torn to pieces. Their job is to find the pieces that may have been taken by forest animals.
While searching the cabin they find a room in the cellar with a lot of strange equipment and jars with body organs. Leo goes upstairs to get some air as Elvis keeps examining the basement. When he finds a young woman (Silje Reinåmo as Thale) hiding in a tub of liquid, Elvis calls for his friend and the two try to solve the mystery of how she got there and what she has to do with the dead body.
The performances by Erlend Nervold, Silje Reinåmo, and Jon Sigve Skard are very good and the trio turns an ordinary plot into a suspense filled mystery that tantalizes the senses. Under the direction of writer Aleksander Nordaas the movie plays out slowly building up in segments each ending with action. He uses the visual tension created by Silje Reinåmo to develop Thale the mysterious young woman who communicates with telepathy and has strange powers. As we start to find out whom she is and how she came to be at the cabin, Nordaas starts to insert more players clouding the story right up to its mythical ending.
Being a fan of suspense and danger I like Thale very much. It has all the elements of the kind of plot that engrosses you and keeps you wanting more.
There are no bonuses or special features on the disc.
The quality of the sound track with the option of either the 5.1 Dolby Digital performed in Norwegian with English subtitles or the 2.0 Dolby Digital English dubbed version are more than adequate. The dialog is clear and very understandable dubbed. In fact watching Thale using the foreign language track with subtitles may be even better for you since you get the extra emotion of the actors from the intended presentation.
The video quality is great with the 16×9 HD for widescreen televisions and the 1.78:1 Aspect Ratio. The movie fills the whole screen and the subtitles are easy to read. If you miss a few sentences, you can easily rewind and pause to get the full dialog. The interior sets are lighted for suspense and horror with dark and dank scenes created to give one the feeling of impending doom. The exteriors with forest landscapes turn the hills into grounds where mysterious beings rove and create havoc.
Thale has not been rated by the MPAA but contains violence, gore, language and nudity.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A good flick for fright lovers.[rating=5]
Specifications and additional film information:
- Cast: Morten Andresen, Erlend Nervold, Silje Reinåmo
- Directed by: Aleksander Nordaas
- MPAA Rating: Unrated
- Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Foreign
- Running Time: 1 hr 18 min
- Street Date: April 23, 2013
- Original Theatrical Release:
- Language: Norwegian, English Dubbed
- Format: DVD
- Audio: 5.1 Dolby Digital Norwegain, 2.0 Dolby Digital English
- Video: 16×9 with a 1.78:1 Aspect Ratio
- Subtitles: English
- Number of Discs: 1 Disc
- Distributed by: XLrator Media
