Review of Maelstrom

Maelstrom (1985)
10/10
brilliant thriller, chilling mood. BBC: DVD please !
5 July 2005
I watched this on TV back in 85, and later on when they did a re-run in the early nineties. I can safely say, no other thriller has made such an impact on me. The matters that are dealt with seems at first to be super-natural, but moves towards a scary insight of the disturbed human mind. The house on the island, the dolls and the woman in white standing at the balcony has burnt itself on my mind. However, the most chilling memory from the series is a very small but important moment in the first episode. The first appearance of Freya Jordahl on the coastal steamer. Creepy indeed. As a Norwegian, I do get annoyed by the moments of "visit-norway" footage, and Tusse Sliberg is at best stiff as Catherine Durell. But the basic mood of the series is so disturbing that it crawls under your skin. It is a thriller so intense you will never forget it, and with very little visual horror. What you don't see is the frightening part.. Special mentioning to the performances of Ann Todd and Susan Gilmore. Brilliant ! And there is of course Edita Brychta. Certainly among the most beautiful actresses ever, really ! ! BBC- we need this on DVD, please, please !!!
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