Veiviseren

The action-packed Norwegian film sensation.

Finnmark in the 11th century. One day, 16-year-old Aigin witnesses a group of black-clad men killing his parents and little sister. The killers turn out to be Chudes, a nomadic raiding people from Karelia who plunder and kill everyone in their path. Aigin is spotted and wounded by an arrow in the arm, but manages to escape to a nearby camp to warn his friends about the Chudes. His arrival sparks conflict. Some accuse him of putting their lives in danger by leaving tracks in the snow. Others understand that he had no choice.

Veiviseren is based on two Sámi legends that are nearly 1,000 years old. Like Norse heroic poems and old folktales, the film is a raw, brutal and exciting story.

The film was a sensation when it premiered. Making a film in Sámi was initially considered unrealistic, but after years of adversity, Nils Gaup finally succeeded. The film went on to become the biggest international success Norwegian cinema had seen at the time, earning, among other things, the first Oscar nomination since Ni liv (1957). It was not only a film with effective, nerve-racking action scenes that could hold its own against the best American films; it was also a story about morality and courage that brought a minority into the spotlight. Some have described the film as a “northern”, which seems apt when you see the nod to John Ford’s classic The Searchers in the opening sequence.