Stuff I've Seen

The Norwegian Primary Election (2009)

Once every 4 years Norwegian tv-stations agree on making a collaborative show about the old people who would like use our taxes for their own purposes.  The fact that the rest of the world cares little about who runs the kingdom of Norway (contrary to common beliefs it’s actually not the king) has yet to influence them in this matter.

As simple as existing

The concept is as simple as existing: Earlier all Norweigans who found it fitting to put a note into a box voted for one of the teams in the show. In the end the teams with the most votes gets to rule the country for 4 years. Throughout the show we’re treated to people claiming their team will get more votes than in the preliminaries and people shouting in the background. In addition, the hosts tell us how they think the final votes count up.

The long wait

First of all I have to say that the runtime of 270 minutes is a bit too long. When this is added to the lack of rising action the result is as dynamic and exiting as a paralyzed monkey trying to eat a banana. I would have preferred a few more challenging activities besides having people who speak nonsence for a living…well speak nonsence. For example might a playoff of deathmatches between the contestants prove more interesting. Also, the ending. I won’t provide any spoilers, but suffice to say there are no big surprises.

Katharsis

A worthy note goes to the contestant Lars Sponheim, who provides the only visible character arc. He even manages to include a well thought out katharsis timed perfectly, almost metronomic, to the only notable climax in this dull affair. In a brilliant twist, he went from being the wounded, gruff loner to filling his cup with sympathy to the brim. Brilliant.

Share on Facebook

Tags: action, banana, deathmatch, election, existing, katharsis, Norway, paralyzed monkey, sponheim, sympathy. character arc