View source for The Ash Lad: In the Hall of the Mountain King

{{Short description|2017 Norwegian fantasy adventure film by Mikkel Brænne Sandemose}}
{{infobox film
| name           = The Ash Lad: In the Hall of the Mountain King
| director       = Mikkel Brænne Sandemose
| writer         = Aleksander Kirkwood Brown, Espen Enger
| starring       = Vebjørn Enger
| music          = [[Ginge Anvik]]
| cinematography = [[John Christian Rosenlund]]
| editing        = Vidar Flataukan
| distributor    = Norsk Filmdistribusjon
| released       = {{Film date|2017|09|29|df=yes}}
| country        = Norway
| language       = Norwegian
| gross          = $4.23 million<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/intl/?page=&country=NO&id=_fASKELADDENIDOVRE01|title=Askeladden - I Dovregubbens hall|publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]]|accessdate=27 February 2018}}</ref>
}}
'''''The Ash Lad: In the Hall of the Mountain King''''' ({{langx|no|'''Askeladden - I Dovregubbens Hall'''}}) is a 2017 Norwegian [[fantasy]] [[adventure film|adventure]] film directed by [[Mikkel Brænne Sandemose]] and starring Vebjørn Enger. It was released on 29 September 2017. It was co-produced by Czech Republic's Sirene Film and Irish Subotica Entertainment.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/festivals/norwegian-director-mikkel-braenne-sandemoses-the-ash-lad-in-the-hall-of-the-mountain-king-movie-trilogy-1202535241/|title=Norwegian Director Mikkel Brænne Sandemose's 'The Ash Lad' Will Be First of a Movie Trilogy (EXCLUSIVE)|author=Jorn Rossing Jensen|date=22 August 2017|accessdate=27 February 2018}}</ref>
==Plot==
Princess Kristin turns 18 and is obliged to be married. According to the legend, the wedding must happen at once, otherwise a gruesome [[troll]] will take her away to the mountain. Prince Fredrik arrives to wed Kristin, but she refuses him and runs away. The king promises his daughter's hand and half the kingdom to whoever can save her. Three poor farm boys, Per, Pål, and Espen, head out to find her and slay the [[King asleep in mountain|Mountain King]], in order to claim the reward and save their farm from ruin.
The film is based on the eighteenth-century Norwegian fairy tales of [[Askeladden]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/307331/|title=Norway's national hero, The Ash Lad, set to get the big-screen treatment|website=Cineuropa - the best of european cinema|date=13 April 2016 |language=en|access-date=2019-12-31}}</ref>
==Sequel==
The plot is continued in ''Ash Lad 2: In Search of the Golden Castle''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8753438/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2|title = Askeladden - I Soria Moria slott|website = [[IMDb]]}}</ref> (also directed by Mikkel Brænne Sandemose in 2019), in which Espen Askeladd (Vebjørn Enger) and Princess Kristin (Eili Harboe) star. Per and Pål are imprisoned in a dungeon and sentenced to death, falsely accused of poisoning the King and Queen, by Svein, who aspires to the throne. Espen and Kristin set out to find the water of life (and thus save her parents), in the mythical palace of Soria Moria, under an enchanted Norwegian lake. On the road they encounter robbers and fortune hunters, including a Danish warrioress Ohlmann, who has a sense of humour, but who is also chasing the same prize. Clues lead them to the lake, guarded by monsters. They succeed in their quest, barely avoiding the execution of their friends and the enthronement of the evil Svein. A third film is planned.
==Cast==
*[[Vebjørn Enger]] as Espen Askeladd
*[[Eili Harboe]] as Princess Kristin
*[[Allan Hyde]] as Prince Frederick
*[[Mads Sjøgård Pettersen]] as Per
*[[Elias Holmen Sørensen]] as Pål
*[[Gisken Armand]] as Stubbekjerringa
*[[Gard B. Eidsvold]] as King Erik
*[[Synnøve Macody Lund]] as Queen Viktoria
*[[Thorbjørn Harr]] as Askeladden's father
*Ida Ursin-Holm as [[Hulder]]
*Rune Hagerup as Cato The Messenger
*Arthur Berning as Gunnar
*Nasrin Khusrawi as Waitress
*Antonio de la Cruz as Vesle-Jan
==Release==
The film was the second highest-grossing film in Norway in 2017, earning $4.23 million.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.kinomagasinet.no/artikkel/de-ti-mest-besokte-kinofilmene-i-norge-i-2017/|title=De ti mest besøkte kinofilmene i Norge i 2017|trans-title=The ten most viewed films in Norway in 2017|accessdate=27 February 2018}}</ref>
==Critical reception==
The CGI features of the film were criticized for being "more or less" by Morten Ståle Nilsen of ''[[Verdens Gang]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.vg.no/rampelys/film/filmanmeldelse/filmanmeldelse-askeladden-i-dovregubbens-hall-en-hit-men-ikke-lenger/a/24150779/|title=Glanset eventyr sliter med å engasjere.|trans-title=Glossy adventure struggles to engage.|language=no|work=[[Verdens Gang]]|date=27 September 2017|accessdate=27 February 2018}}</ref>
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
*{{IMDb title|tt5628418}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ash Lad: In the Hall of the Mountain King}}
[[Category:2017 fantasy films]]
[[Category:2017 films]]
[[Category:Norwegian fantasy films]]
[[Category:Films about trolls]]
[[Category:Films based on fairy tales]]
[[Category:2010s Norwegian-language films]]