Orion's Belt

After many successful youth films, renowned director Ola Solum made his first work for a grown-up audience in 1985. Based on the best-selling novel by Jon Michelet, he created a gripping political thriller that takes us to the far-flung icey wastes of Spitzbergen, where NATO and the Soviet Union rattled their sabres in the mid-1980s. The title of the film refers to the code name used at the time by military strategists for this Arctic region. When three Norwegian adventurers discover a secret Soviet military station in this seemingly barren area, they are forced to flee for their lives. They have clearly become unwilling witnesses to a political conspiracy in which even their own government is involved. “Orion’s Belt” was awarded four “Amandas”, for Best Film, Best Camera, Best Music as well as for the acting of the ensemble. —Nordische Filmtage Lübeck