Pathfinder [Ofelas] ***** (1987, Mikkel Gaup, Ingvald Guttorm, Nils Utsi, Helgi Skúlason, Henrik H Buljo) – Classic Movie Review 7755

Writer-director Nils Gaup’s 1988 Pathfinder [Ofelas] is a thrilling and hypnotic Norwegian adventure film, a mix of violent action and Lapp legend. It is the 1000 AD-set tale of a boy called Aigin (Mikkel Gaup, the director’s son) who alone escapes a horde of murdering savages, and is helped by villagers whose lives he unwittingly endangers. It is down to him to pit his wits against the savages.

There is a marvellous performance from the boy, the mountain scenery is breathtaking, and director Nils Gaup’s delight in telling a great yarn speeds it along at breakneck pace with pauses for strong emotional effect. It is a realistically achieved edge-of-seat thrill ride.

Pathfinder is an intense sensory experience: you can feel the cold, the danger, the fear, the excitement. It is nothing short of great. It is made in the Lapp language, Saami — a first — with subtitles. The American dubbed version spoils it a little. It was Oscar nominated for Best Foreign Language Film.

Pathfinder is also known as Ofelas (original title) and Veiviseren.

It was remade as Pathfinder in 2007 with Karl Urban.

The film’s villain Tsjuderen med arret (played by Helgi Skúlason) does not say a word in the entire film.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 7755

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com