Headhunters – A riveting Norwegian thriller

Original Title	Hodejegerne
Language	Norwegian/Danish
Year	2011
Runtime	1h 36m
Genre	Action/Crime/Thriller
Rating	R (Violence, Profanity, Nudity)

Like movies with unpredictable twists and turns that keep you guessing? Plus, weirdly humorous situations, shocks and surprises? If so, Headhunters is the movie for you!

Headhunters (Norwegian: Hodejegerne) is based on the bestselling novel (same name) by Norwegian author Jo Nesbø. Roger Brown (Aksel Hennie) has a great life. He is Norway’s most successful headhunter. Roger is married to a beautiful art gallery owner Diana (Synnøve Macody Lund) and owns a magnificent house. Bold outside, but insecure inside, Roger feels the need to have a luxurious lifestyle to impress his wife, who is much taller than him. He resorts to high-priced art thefts to fund his lavish lifestyle. Diana introduces Roger to Clas Greve (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) who seems a perfect resource for the company Pathfinder, for whom Roger is recruiting. Roger gets to know that Clas is in possession of a very valuable painting that is believed to be worth millions. He decides to steal it.

Perfect blend of Suspense, Action and Dark Comedy

Headhunters is like a roller-coaster ride. Starts slowly, gaining momentum and once it gets going, it’s a pure adrenaline rush! What seems like a straightforward heist movie, suddenly takes a sharp turn and evolves into something unexpected. Tonal inconsistency can affect the viewing experience sometimes, but this movie uses it brilliantly to toy with audience expectations. The movie catches you off-guard with its cleverly placed surprise elements.

Headhunters has an intriguing plot and screenplay, elevated by excellent performances from the cast. Aksel (Roger) and Nikolaj (Clas) deserves special mention. This is not your typical Good guy vs Bad guy thriller. Here is where Headhunters standout – Good character development. You start seeing the characters one way, but it changes through the course of the movie. The protagonist is often out of his comfort zone. He goes through a series of events from which, there is no guarantee of him getting out in one piece. This creates momentum and genuine thrills offering edge of the seat entertainment.

As Entertaining as it is, Headhunters is definitely not for the Squeamish!

Headhunters is visually stunning. Unlike many thrillers which relies on special effects and shaky cam, this movie offers an immersive experience through slick editing and excellent cinematography.  The movie makes great use of silence as much as dialogues. Director Mortan Tyldum does a masterful job incorporating suspense and action, complementing the clever narrative. By no means is this a flawless movie – it does have its flaws, but no glaring ones to deter your attention.

Headhunters offers intense entertainment, but doesn’t take itself too seriously. Although the theme is dark and violent, it can be weirdly comical at times. For instance – the excrement scene, dog attack, encounter with lotte and the scene involving a tractor are nerve-racking, laced with black humour. There is hardly any CGI and everything looks so real with a visceral feel, adding to the effectiveness of the movie.

Verdict

Headhunters is a relentlessly engaging Crime-thriller which holds your unwavering attention till the final credits roll.

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Image source: IMDB
Video Credits: YouTube

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Have you read my review on Drishyam 2? Read here

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