''Zero Kelvin'' () is a 1995 Norwegian

psychological thriller Psychological thriller is a genre combining the thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting. In terms of context and co ...

film directed by

Hans Petter Moland Hans Petter Moland (born 17 October 1955) is a Norwegian film director. Moland was born in Oslo. He had received awards for his commercials at major festivals, including Cannes, before he made his feature debut in 1993 with '' The Last Lieutenant ...

and starring Gard B. Eidsvold and

Stellan Skarsgård Stellan Skarsgård (, ; born 13 June 1951) is a Swedish actor. He is known for his collaborations with director Lars von Trier appearing in ''Breaking the Waves'' (1996), ''Dancer in the Dark'' (2000), ''Dogville'' (2007), ''Melancholia'' (2011 ...

. It explores the tensions between three men in an isolated

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

trapping station in the 1920s.

Plot

In 1920s

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, Henrik Larsen, an aspiring poet, leaves his girlfriend Gertrude to spend a year as a trapper in Greenland. There he shares a small winter hut with the station master Randbæk and a scientist named Holm. Randbaek mocks Larsen's poetry, violin playing, and kindness to the sled dogs. Larsen soon proves himself superior at several tasks, but this only angers Randbaek further. He discovers a letter from Gertrude rejecting Larsen's marriage proposal and taunts Larsen that she is unfaithful. Concerned with their dwindling supplies, Randbaek and Holm agree to kill one of the dogs over Larsen's objections. To spite Larsen, Randbaek deliberately wounds the dog rather than kill it. Randbaek and Larsen fight, and Holm attacks Randbaek to stop him from murdering Larsen. To make amends, Randbaek surprises Larsen with a Christmas feast, but when the two again argue about the dogs, Randbaek angrily destroys the decorations. Disgusted with both men, Holm renounces his friendship with Randbaek and departs the station alone by sled. A few days later, Randbaek drunkenly knocks over a lantern, burning down the cabin. Now without shelter, the pair try to travel by sled dog to another settlement. When Randbaek refuses to share the work and whips Larsen's face, Larsen throws him from the sled, and they exchange gunfire. After Larsen finds Holm's sled crashed into a ravine, however, he lets Randbaek overtake him, and they agree to work together to survive. Larsen attempts to cross the ice of a fjord despite Randbaek's warning and plunges into the water. The dogs pull him free and he finds shelter in the prow of a wrecked ship, where he loses consciousness. He wakes to find Randbaek has saved his life by building a fire. Shortly after, when Randbaek begins brutally beating Larsen's favorite dog to death for food, Larsen shoots him repeatedly. As he dies, Randbaek confesses that he had once murdered a lover of his wife, and for him, the murder was "the end of love"; he predicts Larsen will now become like him. Safely returned to Oslo, Larsen claims that Randbaek died in the fire and is reunited with Gertrude, who now agrees to marry him. As she prepares to shave him, he begins to weep.

Cast

as Randbæk *

Gard B. Eidsvold Gard () is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;Bjørn Sundquist Bjørn Richard Sundquist (born 16 June 1948) is a Norwegian actor, famous for TV, theatre, and movie roles. For many years he worked at Det Norske Teatret and Nationaltheateret in Oslo, and he is especially famous for the roles as Merlin and H ...

as Jakob Holm * Camilla Martens as Gertrude *Paul-Ottar Haga as Officer *Johannes Joner as Company Man *Erik Øksnes as Captain *

Lars Andreas Larssen Lars Andreas Larssen (27 March 1935 – 29 January 2014) was a Norwegian stage, film and television actor.Juni Dahr Juni Vibeke Dahr (born 29 June 1953) is a Norwegian actress. She was born in Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo ...

as Woman in park *

Johan Rabaeus Johan Rabaeus (born ''Carl Magnus Olof Johan Rabéus'' 31 July 1947) is a Swedish actor who was born in Stockholm but grew up in Paris and Geneva. He is known for portraying very unpleasant characters, such as Erik Ponti's sadistic stepfather in ...

as Man in park *Frank Iversen as Poetry Buyer *Tinkas Qorfiq as Jane

Production

The film's Greenland scenes were shot in

Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...

, Norway.

References

External links

* 1995 films 1990s adventure drama films Norwegian adventure drama films 1990s Norwegian-language films Films about poets Films set in the 1920s Films set in Greenland Films shot in Norway Films directed by Hans Petter Moland 1995 drama films {{Norway-film-stub