The King's Choice

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The King's Choice
The King's Choice.jpg
Film poster
Directed by Erik Poppe
Written byHarald Rosenløw-Eeg
Jan Trygve Røyneland
Produced by Finn Gjerdrum
Stein B. Kvae
Starring
Cinematography John Christian Rosenlund
Edited byEinar Egeland
Music by Johan Söderqvist
Distributed by Nordisk Filmdistribusjon
Release date
  • 23 September 2016 (2016-09-23)
Running time
133 minutes
CountriesNorway
Sweden
Denmark
Ireland [1]
LanguagesNorwegian
Danish
German
Swedish
Budget$7.5 million [2]
Box office$9.1 million [3]

The King's Choice (Norwegian : Kongens nei, meaning "The King's No" [4] ) is a 2016 biographical war film directed by Erik Poppe. It is a co-production of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Ireland, [1] [5] and was selected as the Norwegian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards. [6] [7] The film made the shortlist of nine films to be considered for a nomination at the 89th Academy Awards. [8]

Contents

Plot

The film focuses on King Haakon VII and the Norwegian royal family in the days before and immediately after the German invasion of Norway in April 1940.

On 8 April, Crown Prince Olav informs his father that the transport ship that was sunk off Lillesand earlier that day was carrying German soldiers, and expresses concern that the government of Prime Minister Johan Nygaardsvold refuses to give up Norway's neutrality in the face of German aggression. At the German embassy in Oslo, German envoy Curt Bräuer is instructed by military attaché Lieutenant-Colonel Hartwig Pohlman to encourage the Norwegian government to allow German troops into the country, under the pretext of defending Norway from a British invasion. Early the following morning, Bräuer takes the German offer to Foreign Minister Halvdan Koht; after consulting the Cabinet, Koht refuses, stating that Norway is a sovereign nation.

Meanwhile, at Oscarsborg Fortress near Drøbak, Colonel Birger Eriksen prepares his undermanned and inexperienced garrison for combat, while receiving reports from the outlying fortresses of incoming German ships. Early on the morning of 9 April, Eriksen spots the German cruiser Blücher entering Drøbak Sound. Despite having received no instructions from Oslo to engage, Eriksen considers the German ship to be hostile and gives the order to fire, and the fortress's guns and torpedo battery sink the Blücher. Prime Minister Nygaardsvold telephones the King, informing him of the impending invasion, and advises him to flee Oslo. The royal family boards a train for Hamar, where the Norwegian Parliament convenes to discuss negotiations with Germany. Bräuer meets Oslo's police chief Kristian Welhaven, his intermediary with the Norwegian Cabinet, to reassure them of his desire to negotiate; at the same time, Pohlman receives orders from Berlin to send paratroopers to Hamar to capture the King and the Cabinet. Nasjonal Samling leader Vidkun Quisling proclaims himself Prime Minister over the national radio, and calls upon the Norwegian people to accept the German occupation forces. Bräuer receives instructions from Hitler himself to go directly to the King and convince him to recognise Quisling's government, though Bräuer is convinced that neither Haakon nor the Cabinet will accept this.

As German troops advance towards Hamar, the royal family and the Cabinet relocate to Elverum, where the decision is made to send Olav's wife and three children to Sweden while the King and the Crown Prince remain in the country. Just after midnight on 10 April, the German paratroopers attack a roadblock at Midtskogen, and are beaten back by the Norwegian volunteers. At Nybergsund, the Cabinet meets to discuss Bräuer's request to meet the King alone to end the hostilities. Despite Olav's objections and fears for his father's safety, Haakon agrees to meet with Bräuer at Elverum. Bräuer urges Haakon to follow the example of his elder brother, King Christian of Denmark, to capitulate without further resistance. Haakon relays the German demands to the Cabinet and states he cannot accept Quisling as Prime Minister, offering to abdicate if the Cabinet felt otherwise. Inspired by the King's decision, the Cabinet informs Bräuer of their refusal. In response, German aircraft bomb Elverum and Nybergsund, forcing Haakon and the Cabinet to flee into the woods.

The King, the Crown Prince, and the Cabinet eventually escape to Britain, where they remain until the end of the war. In May 1945, following the German surrender, Haakon is reunited with his grandson, Prince Harald, in London before the royal family returns to Norway.

Cast

Release

The film was first shown to the whole of the present Norwegian royal family at the Royal Palace in Oslo on 16 September 2016. [9]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 83% based on reviews from 24 critics, and an average rating of 6.6/10. [10] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 64 out of 100, based on reviews from 8 critics, indicating "generaly favourable reviews". [11]

See also

Historic background

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haakon VII</span> King of Norway from 1905 to 1957

Haakon VII was King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norwegian resistance movement</span> Resistance to German occupation in WWII

The Norwegian resistance to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elverum</span> Municipality in Innlandet, Norway

[ˈɛ⁠lvərɵm] is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Elverum. Other settlements in the municipality include Heradsbygd, Sørskogbygda, and Neverlia. Elverum lies at an important crossroads, with the town of Hamar to the west, the town of Kongsvinger to the south, and village of Innbygda and the Swedish border to the northeast. It is bordered on the north by Åmot municipality, in the northeast by Trysil municipality, in the southeast by Våler municipality, and in the west by Løten municipality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johan Nygaardsvold</span> Norwegian politician (1879–1952)

Johan Nygaardsvold was a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party who served as the 21st prime minister of Norway from 1935 to 1945. From June 1940 until May 1945, he oversaw the Norwegian Government-in-exile from London as head of the Nygaardsvold cabinet during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Midtskogen</span>

The Battle of Midtskogen was a minor battle fought on the night of 9–10 April 1940 during the Second World War between a German raiding party and an improvised Norwegian force. The site of the battle was Midtskogen Farm, situated approximately 5 km (3.1 mi) west of the town of Elverum at the mouth of the Østerdalen valley in southern Norway. The invading German troops aimed to capture King Haakon VII and his cabinet, thereby forcing Norway into submission. After a short battle, the German force withdrew, having lost its commander in the fighting.

The Elverum Authorization allowed the Cabinet of Norway to temporarily and legitimately assert absolute authority given that the Storting was no longer able to convene in ordinary session in Oslo. The action was approved unanimously by the Storting in the town of Elverum on 9 April 1940, after the Norwegian royal family, the Cabinet, and the Storting had evacuated Oslo to evade capture by German troops in the course of Operation Weserübung during World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halvdan Koht</span> Norwegian historian and politician (1873–1965)

Halvdan Koht was a Norwegian historian and politician representing the Labour Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Drøbak Sound</span> Battle of World War II in the Norwegian Campaign

The Battle of Drøbak Sound took place in Drøbak Sound, the northernmost part of the outer Oslofjord in southern Norway, on 9 April 1940. It marked the end of the "Phoney War" and the beginning of World War II in Western Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Curt Bräuer</span>

Curt Bräuer was a German career diplomat.

Hans Julius Gabrielsen was a Norwegian jurist and politician for the Liberal Party. He is best known as County Governor of Finnmark and County Governor of Oppland, as well as Consultative Councillor of State for Finnmark Affairs in 1945.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kjeld Stub Irgens</span> Norwegian politician (1879–1963)

Kjeld Stub Irgens was a Norwegian politician during the German occupation of Norway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olav Meisdalshagen</span> Norwegian politician (1903–1959)

Olav Meisdalshagen was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party best known for serving as the Norwegian Minister of Finance from December 1947 to November 1951 and as the Norwegian Minister of Agriculture from January 1955 to May 1956. He was also a Member of Parliament for a long time, being elected for the first time in parliamentary election of 1936 and serving until his death, except for the period between 1940 and 1945 when the Parliament of Norway was de facto defunct due to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. His death in 1959 came halfway through his fifth term in Parliament, and shortly after a parliamentary speech.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monarchy of Norway</span> Head of state of Norway

The Norwegian monarch is the head of state of Norway, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The Norwegian monarchy can trace its line back to the reign of Harald Fairhair and the previous petty kingdoms which were united to form Norway; it has been in unions with both Sweden and Denmark for long periods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nybergsund</span> Village in Eastern Norway, Norway

Nybergsund is a village in the municipality of Trysil in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) south of the village of Innbygda which is the municipal centre of Trysil. The village is best known for serving as a hiding place for the Norwegian royal family and Cabinet and sustaining German bombing during the German conquest of Norway. The village is also the birthplace of award-winning Norwegian writer and translator Tormod Haugen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arne Sunde</span> Norwegian politician

Arne Toralf Sunde was a Norwegian politician, Olympic shooter and army officer. He is best known for his participation in the 1940 Norwegian Campaign, his participation in Nygaardsvold's Cabinet during its 1940–1945 exile in London and three years as a United Nations ambassador. Sunde was President of the United Nations Security Council in June 1949 and July 1950.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nygaardsvold's Cabinet</span> Second Labour cabinet in Norway

Nygaardsvold's Cabinet was appointed on 20 March 1935, the second Labour cabinet in Norway. It brought to an end the non-socialist minority governments that had dominated Norwegian politics since the introduction of the parliamentary system in 1884, and replaced it with stable Labour governments that, with the exception of during World War II, would last until the coalition Lyng cabinet in 1963.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Platou</span> Norwegian civil servant and politician

Carl Nicolai Stoud Platou was a Norwegian civil servant and politician. A jurist by education, he is best known for his civil servant career in the Norwegian Ministry of Justice and the Police, which spanned from 1911 to 1941. He was promoted to deputy under-secretary of state in 1926, but was dismissed and later incarcerated for listening to hostile radio in 1941, during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. He returned after the war as Chief Minister of the Ministry of Justice and the Police in May 1945 and County Governor of Akershus and Oslo from 1945 to 1955. He had been involved in politics before the war as well, as deputy mayor of Aker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quisling regime</span> Collaborationist government of Norway (1942–45)

The Quisling regime, or Quisling government are common names used to refer to the fascist collaboration government led by Vidkun Quisling in German-occupied Norway during the Second World War. The official name of the regime from 1 February 1942 until its dissolution in May 1945 was Den nasjonale regjering. Actual executive power was retained by the Reichskommissariat Norwegen, headed by Josef Terboven.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kristian Welhaven</span> Norwegian police chief (1883–1975)

Kristian Welhaven was a Norwegian police officer. He was chief of police of Oslo for 27 years, from 1927 to 1954. He was a leading force in establishing an organized Norwegian intelligence service before World War II, and in re-establishing it after the war. During the war years Welhaven was arrested by the Germans and imprisoned in both Norway and Germany, before spending the remainder of the war as a civilian internee in Bavaria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Weserübung</span> Code name for Germanys assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War

Operation Weserübung was Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign.

References

  1. 1 2 "Kongens Nei (Annual Archives 2017 Film File)". Berlinale. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
  2. "Innspillingen har tatt fire år – her er traileren til "Kongens nei"". NRK. 24 July 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
  3. "Kongens Nei (The King's Choice)". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved 8 April 2017.[ dead link ]
  4. "Question about Norwegian (bokmal)". HiNative. Retrieved 24 March 2018.
  5. "Norway picks Irish co-production The King's Choice for Oscar consideration". Scannain. 15 September 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  6. Johansen, Øystein David (8 September 2016). ""Kongens nei" er Norges Oscar-kandidat". Verdens Gang . Retrieved 8 September 2016.
  7. Sandwell, Ian (8 September 2016). "Oscars: Norway picks 'The King's Choice'". ScreenDaily . Retrieved 8 September 2016.
  8. "Oscars: Nine Films Advance in Foreign-Language Race". Variety . 15 December 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2016.
  9. En magisk kveld i Slottsparken The Royal House of Norway, official website (in Norwegian)
  10. "The King's Choice (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes .
  11. "The King's Choice". Metacritic .