Erik Poppe’s “Quisling – The Final Days” is an interesting look into the mind of Vidkun Quisling, Norway’s most famous Nazi ally, in the crucial years right after World War II. The movie takes place during Norway’s freedom in May 1945. It goes deep into the mind of a man whose name would become associated with betraying his country.
The story is mostly about Quisling’s time in jail and deep conversations with Peder Olsen, the prison chaplain who is supposed to help the shamed political leader face his mistakes. As Norway celebrates its freedom, Quisling is stuck both physically and mentally. He is sure that he is doing the right thing, but he also knows that he is going to be killed soon.
Poppe’s movie is more than just a history lesson; it’s also a complex character study that doesn’t make Quisling into an easy, bad guy. Instead, it shows a complicated man who really thought he was doing what was best for Norway, even though there is more and more proof that he worked with the Nazis and was antisemitic.
There are many connections between Quisling’s story and Norway’s worst wartime times. He was a minister of the government before he worked with the Nazi invaders. Because of this, his last name became a word used all over the world to mean “traitor.” The movie looks into his past, showing his charitable work in Ukraine and his deep-seated fear of Bolshevism, which helps explain his political beliefs.
Gard B. Eidsvold as Quisling and Anders Danielsen Lie as Olsen give great performances that hold the story together. When they meet, their arguments become philosophical duels that push watchers to figure out the mental processes that make people work together and justify themselves.
The movie is so interesting because it doesn’t make easy moral judgments. It doesn’t excuse Quisling’s actions, but it shows him as a complex person who is sometimes narcissistic and delusional and sometimes able to truly believe in his goal. His interactions with his wife Maria and his talks with Olsen in jail show psychological depths that go beyond what most historical accounts say.
The film looks great from a technical point of view. Director of Photography Jonas Alarik uses close-ups and small rooms to create a feeling of psychological claustrophobia, similar to how Quisling’s world is shrinking. The color scheme of greens and reds creates an emotional setting that goes beyond the look of most period films.
The most important thing about “Quisling—The Final Days” is that it feels too relevant to current political debate. The movie shows subtle similarities to current authoritarian tendencies and examines how people can be involved in systemic violence while still feeling good about themselves.
Focusing on the last days of Quisling’s life, Poppe makes more than a historical play. He writes a deep reflection on responsibility, illusion, and the thin line between being sure of something and going crazy.
Treason, Trials, and Transformation: Quisling’s Historical Landscape
Before World War II even finished, Vidkun Quisling’s name was linked to betrayal. He went from being a respected Norwegian leader to a national outcast because he worked with Nazi Germany. His last name became a worldwide symbol of betrayal. At first, Quisling was a government minister and a strong anti-communist. He helped the Nazis take over Norway and pushed policies that would hurt his people.
Before he became famous for his part in the war, Quisling had a complicated past. In the 1920s, he worked as a humanitarian help worker in Ukraine. He and Fridtjof Nansen saved hundreds of thousands of people from going hungry. This work for others is very different from his later work with the Nazis, showing the complicated personality of a man who could be compassionate and deeply morally flawed at the same time.
When Norway gained its freedom in May 1945, the country was determined to get justice. The court process against Quisling was carefully planned to make him answer for his actions. As prosecutors slowly disproved his claims that he was working for the greater good of Norway, the trial became a national release.
Important statements, especially those from Holocaust survivors like Dr. Leo Eitinger, showed how cruel Quisling’s antisemitic policies were. About 1,000 Norwegian Jews were sent away during the occupation, and only 12 lived. This shocking fact put a dent in Quisling’s boastful stories.
The execution of Quisling was more than just a legal punishment; it was a sign of Norway’s trauma and wish to restore morality. The choice to bring back the death penalty for people who helped the enemy during the war showed how badly the country was hurt and how hard it is to heal after a war.
Erik Poppe’s movie uses many first-hand sources, like Peder Olsen’s diary, which no one knew about before. By focusing on Quisling’s interactions with Olsen in jail, the story gives a nuanced look at a man about to be judged, showing the psychological complexities behind working together for political reasons.
From Quisling’s last radio speech to his meeting with the mass graves, the film painstakingly recreates historical events, creating a vivid picture of a turning point in Norwegian history. Each scene is carefully crafted to balance historical truth and dramatic interpretation, giving viewers a deep understanding of this dark chapter.
When seen in this way, “Quisling—The Final Days” is more than just a biographical story. It’s a deep reflection on how flawed people are, how dogma can be alluring, and how thin the line is between conviction and delusion.
Souls in Conflict: Performances that Illuminate History
At its core, “Quisling: The Final Days” is an engrossing character study driven by outstanding performances that turn historical figures from faraway memories into incredibly complex people.
As Vidkun Quisling, Gard B. Eidsvold gives a masterful performance, showing a man who is both grand and pathetically weak. Because Eidsvold’s father was tortured by the Quisling government, which gives the story a lot of depth, he acts with volcanic intensity in courtroom scenes.
His Quisling is an ego who is always shaky between making big claims about himself and slowly falling apart mentally. “Helped more Jews than anyone in Norway,” Eidsvold says, and the line sounds like he’s full of fantasy and desperation. His acting turns Quisling from a historical parody into a deeply human look at how ideology can change how people see right and wrong.
Anders Danielsen Lie gives an equally detailed performance as Pastor Peder Olsen. To help Quisling find spiritual redemption, Lie portrays him as a man whose core beliefs are slowly broken down through their intense talks.
Lie’s Olsen starts as naive and optimistic, but as the story goes on, it shows more doubt, moral complexity, and inner fight. His portrayal of a spiritual guide whose faith is put to the ultimate test when he meets pure, unrepentant evil is sympathetic and increasingly conflicted.
The female figures in the movie are important contrasts to the male leads. Maria Quisling, played by Lisa Carlehed, is a sharp enabler who actively supports her husband’s worst tendencies. Lisa Loven Kongsli’s Heidi Olsen, on the other hand, reflects how most Norwegians feel: she demands responsibility and has no patience for working together.
Their relationships are symbolic in the bigger psychological and national story. Maria feeds into Quisling’s delusions, while Heidi keeps her husband grounded in moral truth. This creates interesting family dynamics that reflect tensions in society as a whole.
Actors like Arthur Hakalathi (as Arvid, the angry jail guard) and Øyvind Brandtzaeg (as Quisling’s confused lawyer) add important layers of texture. As a man who lost his brother to Quisling’s regime, Hakalathi brings raw, visceral anger that represents the pain of the whole country.
What makes these performances stand out is how committed everyone is to subtlety. Instead of showing simple good guys and bad guys, the group creates a deeply human look at moral compromise, psychological manipulation, and the thin line between belief and delusion.
They don’t just play out historical events; they also give them psychological weight. This makes “Quisling – The Final Days” more than just a historical drama; it’s a deep look at how people behave under much moral pressure.
Framing Darkness: Cinematic Mastery in Historical Storytelling
Erik Poppe takes historical facts and turns them into an intense movie experience. This makes “Quisling – The Final Days” much more than a typical biographical drama. His directing style treats Quisling’s story not like old history but as a live, breathing psychological landscape.
Cinematographer Jonas Alarik becomes an important part of the story by using images that say a lot. Because of his close-up lenses, Akershus Prison becomes a mental prison. Tight frames trap Quisling in visual areas that get smaller and smaller, perfectly showing how his world is shrinking and his existential pressure is rising.
Alarik doesn’t use cold blue or sepia tones, which isn’t usual for period films. Instead, he creates a rich color scheme ruled by intense reds and greens, which are colors full of psychological tension. Each frame feels like a carefully planned emotional landscape that shows how Quisling’s mind is falling apart.
Jonas Colstrup’s score is another important tool for telling a story. Instead of standard music for historical dramas, he creates a soundscape that makes you feel like the world is falling apart. The music doesn’t just accompany the scenes; it also evokes psychological unease, making people feel the unstable time between judging history and facing oneself.
Poppe is brilliant at keeping the story moving forward, even in scenes with a lot of conversation. With careful blocking, nuanced performances, and a deep knowledge of psychological warfare, something that could become dull becomes interesting. In every talk between Quisling and Olsen, it feels like they are in a chess match where the outcome of ideas and spiritual lives are at stake.
The stage design goes beyond just reenacting historical events. There is a sense of lived-inness to the sets, which is weighed down by national grief. Akershus Prison is more than just a place; it’s a figure that represents Norway’s mental landscape after the war. It’s part courtroom, part confession booth.
Poppe turns historical material that could be dry into a gripping psychological thriller by refusing to make it sensational and instead accepting complexity. The movie stops being so much about what happened and is more about why people make terrible moral choices.
The movie “Quisling – The Final Days” is more than just a movie. It has great direction, beautiful photography, and a strong focus on people’s complexity. It’s a deep reflection on belief, delusion, and the thin line between being sure of something and going crazy.
Scripting Truth: Navigating Moral Labyrinths
The script for “Quisling: The Final Days” masterfully reconstructs historical facts based on Pastor Peder Olsen’s diary, which was unknown before. What starts as a possible history record turns into an engrossing psychological investigation of how complicated human morality is.
The courtroom is used brilliantly in this movie not only as a legal setting but also as a psychological battlefield. Each legal case is like a probe into Quisling’s broken mind, showing different levels of delusion and self-justification. The screenplay turns a dull court case into a tense psychological battle where words are weapons and truth is an idea that can be changed.
Erik Poppe and Harald Rosenløw-Eeg are screenwriters who write conversations full of intellectual tension. Quisling’s statements in court aren’t just defense techniques; they show how sure he is of his rightness. The legal arguments become a complicated dance between individual beliefs and the moral opinion of the group.
The movie’s structure goes against typical historical drama rules. The screenplay tells stories in a more complicated way instead of in a straight line. There are seamless transitions between flashbacks and times of introspection, giving a kaleidoscopic view of Quisling’s mental landscape.
Olsen’s diary notes hold the story together. They give us a personal look into the mental interactions between the prisoner and the spiritual advisor, changing the story from a historical account to a deep look at how weak people’s morals are.
The script keeps the story moving quickly by carefully changing the tension. There are intense scenes in court and quieter, more introspective scenes between Quisling and Olsen. Because of this rhythmic method, the story doesn’t get too clinical or too dramatic.
By focusing on psychological detail over historical spectacle, the script transforms “Quisling—The Final Days” from a simple historical drama into a deep reflection on how people can deceive themselves, change, and break moral rules.
Moral Frontiers: Unraveling Human Complexity
“Quisling—The Final Days” is a shocking look at how morally weak people are. It goes beyond simple historical facts to show how deception and rationalization work in our minds.
Pastor Peder Olsen’s amazing spiritual journey is at the story’s heart. It’s a deep battle between kindness and moral judgment. His conversations with Quisling are more than just pastoral advice; they become a small-scale fight between organized religion and individual human darkness.
The movie bravely questions the idea of forgiveness, asking viewers to think about how seemingly moral people can accept terrible moral mistakes as normal. Everyone can use Olsen’s spiritual battle as an example of how to fight evil without giving up one’s basic humanity.
Instead of being a cartoonish bad guy, Quisling is shown as a frighteningly familiar type of person: a true believer who is sure of his goodness. His mental state shows how ideology can spread, turning a person’s conviction into violence against the whole society.
The movie is brilliant because it shows how dictatorship works simply, showing how big political stories are often made up of small details and people lying to themselves.
Even though the story is set in Norway during World War II, it has much to do with how politics work today. It’s a stark reminder of how people who think they are doing what’s best for society can work together to destroy democratic structures.
By not choosing between moral extremes, the movie gives us a complex look at how normal people can be involved in bad things. It asks viewers to see similar psychological processes at work in today’s political scenes, which makes studying the past feel very important.
In the end, “Quisling—The Final Days” is less about a specific historical event and more about how people always fight to stay moral in the face of systemic corruption and their own temptations.
Sonic Shadows: Technical Craftsmanship in Historical Storytelling
The music in Jonas Colstrup’s “Quisling—The Final Days” goes beyond typical music for historical dramas and turns sound into a psychological tool. Instead of depending on big orchestral moments, Colstrup creates an unstable soundscape that feels like the story’s nervous system.
The movie’s color grading isn’t just for looks; it’s meant to be a psychological tool. The nauseating green and red tones do more than just color the screen; they make you feel bad. Each frame is meant to be disturbing, reflecting the moral turmoil of the time.
Sound design adds another character to the story. Ambient sounds that are carefully modulated and used as weapons make people feel a lot of psychological stress. The prison walls seem to breathe, the conversation echoes with hidden meanings, and every sound effect adds to the film’s oppressive mood.
Editing becomes an important part of telling a story; it changes scenes in a courtroom that could be static into moving psychological studies. Cuts between Quisling’s memories, courtroom testimony, and private talks create a rhythmic story that makes viewers constantly question what they think they know about the truth.
By using technical aspects as story tools instead of just extras, “Quisling—The Final Days” transforms from a historical drama into a fully intense psychological experience.
Moral Excavation: Remembering Humanity’s Complexity
“Quisling—The Final Days” is more than just a biographical story; it’s a deep psychological exploration that forces viewers to confront uncomfortable facts about moral compromise, institutional betrayal, and personal responsibility.
The film’s great strength is that it never stops paying attention to details. By not making Quisling into a simple, cartoonish bad guy, it shows how terrifyingly simple systemic cooperation works. Erik Poppe’s masterful direction and Gard B. Eidsvold’s mesmerizing performance turn historical records into a live, breathing meditation on the complexity of people.
This movie isn’t for people who just like historical dramas; it’s for people who like deep psychological investigations. It is a revelation for people who want to know how ideology can turn people into bad people, how regular people can justify doing horrible things, and how personal belief can become a dangerous weapon.
The movie Quisling—The Final Days is flawed but powerful. It shows cinema at its most intellectually and emotionally brave and how film can bring out the darkest parts of human experience.
The Review
Quisling: The Final Days
"Quisling - The Final Days" is a groundbreaking historical play that goes beyond telling biographical stories. A notorious historical person is turned into a complex human study through a carefully planned psychological investigation that challenges viewers to understand the frighteningly thin line between moral collapse and conviction. The movie is more than just a history record; the performances, especially Gard B. Eidsvold's eerie Vidkun Quisling and Anders Danielsen Lie's complex Pastor Olsen make it a deep reflection of human nature. Erik Poppe's direction makes sure that every frame is filled with psychological tension, making the experience of watching it both mentally challenging and deeply painful.
PROS
- Extraordinary lead performances
- Nuanced psychological portrayal
- Innovative directorial approach
- Powerful historical examination
- Complex narrative structure
CONS
- Potentially challenging pacing
- Intense psychological content might be overwhelming
- Dense dialogue-driven scenes
