Two men and a baby – this is how the content of Nils Gaup’s medieval adventure “The Last King” can be briefly and concisely described. But what initially sounds like a comedy is actually a real adventure drama, as an attempt is made to kill the baby in question – and this is even based on true historical events.
If you want to see ‘Game Of Thrones’ fan favorite Kristofer Hivju and Jakob Oftebro (‘Operation Black Crab’) hop on their skis to escape through the snowy Norwegian wilderness with the little royal heir, Then tune in on Tele5 on Saturday evening (March 30) at 10:05 PM. A repeat will take place on the night of Monday, April 1 to Tuesday at 12:10 AM. If you missed both broadcasts: the adventure film is of course also available on Blu-ray and DVD for your home theater from Amazon and Co.
“The Last King”: Ski Chases and Fighting Action
In 1204, the Norwegian king was murdered, and his newborn heir to the throne was also in mortal danger. Little Håkon Håkonsson was born out of wedlock, but he still has the right to be chosen as the next ruler – which the enemies of the previous royal family obviously want to prevent. The warriors Torstein (Hivju) and Skjervald (Oftebro), who belong to the loyal Birkebeiner group, take care of the baby.
With their protégé in tow, they flee across the icy Norwegian landscape to bring little Håkon to safety and prevent further bloodshed in the already raging civil war. Along the way they brave not only natural dangers, but also repeated enemy attacks, especially from her most stubborn pursuer Orm (Nikolaj Lie Kaas, “Heroes of Probability”).
The Birkebeiner group really existed – that’s why the film is called “Birkebeinerne” in the Norwegian original. There was a civil war between them and Bagler’s ecclesiastical political party in the early 13th century, and there is also historical evidence of an endangered heir named Håkon Håkonsson. Inspired by these events, author Ravn Lanesskog then wrote the script for “The Last King,” which is more of an action-packed ski adventure than an accurate history lesson. “The Last King – The Heir of the King” was performed by Nils Gaupdirector of the Oscar-nominated survival drama “Scout“.
Even more Scandinavian historical drama: ‘The Queen of the North’
Our streaming tip: If you have now acquired a taste for Scandinavian historical epics, may we show you the pinnacle of Danish cinema”The Queen of the North“I recommend this to you as VoD for example on Amazon*you can buy or borrow. FILMSTARTS author Oliver Kube rated the excellently cast drama about the reign of the queen Margrete (Trine Dyrholm) with four out of five stars in his review and draws the conclusion: “Just like ‘Game Of Thrones’, only real and without dragons.”
You can read in this text why the film is worth seeing (unfortunately the historical epic is currently no longer available in the media library), and we also have the trailer for you here: