If you’re looking at this movie and thinking that might not make a lot of sense it might pay to look at it from a different perspective since the majority of the cast is Norwegian, or representing this region of the world, while Natt Wolf isn’t. But he is playing an individual that discovers that he has supernatural powers that are reminiscent of Norse mythology. This is a little confusing since the lightning he can summon is obviously an aspect of Odin, but the flame would appear to belong to Surt, or Surtur, or even Logi, all whom are not what people would consider a true Norse deity of the Aesir or Vanir, but are instead giants and spirits that are meant to help or combat the gods during Ragnarok. The idea of a great battle on the horizon is something that appears to be pushed in the trailer, but the idea that Wolf’s character is simply trying to stay away from people is also apparent, which is wise of course since it would indicate that he has some personal responsibility and doesn’t want to hurt anyone. But with such destructive powers, it does feel that he’s bound to lose control at some point and things will happen that will make him a threat to others, and then more things will happen that will only worsen the situation since human beings tend to be frightened by that which they don’t understand, and one of the natural reactions is to eliminate what is perceived as a threat.
So far it looks like a very impressive movie that might be worth watching since Norse mythology is fascinating and offers up quite a few great and very intriguing stories that have been used in many different ways. Many critics have already had their turn at this movie and have decided in their own way whether it’s worth watching or not. Some have been kind, others have been less than receptive to the idea of it, and yet others have been judicious in their reviews, stating that there are parts of it that are enjoyable and other parts that could have used a little more work. But for the budget and the fact that it wasn’t touted as one of the blockbuster movies of the year, it does look like it’s something that people could get behind and simply call a good movie. Personally, I enjoy anything having to do with Norse mythology as long as it’s a good story and well-constructed, but there are a great number of movies that barely touch upon the actual mythology and use only bits and pieces to really flesh it out. Mortal does feel like one of those, but it also feels as though it keeps itself tighter to the mythology by creating a balance between good and evil and doing a better job of keeping the protagonist as someone that doesn’t really crave the power and is attempting to keep it from harming others, but obviously fails to do so since it’s beyond his control.
Many movies dealing with Norse mythology either take it so far beyond the pale that it becomes its own story, such as the MCU’s Thor franchise, or they don’t put in enough and focus instead on the mythology as a collection of stories and fables that are barely ever used. It’s very true that Norse mythology might not spark the same interest as the story of Thor, since within the legends, Loki is not Thor’s brother, Hela, or Hel, is Loki’s daughter, as are Fenrir and Jormungandr, the Midgard Serpent. Thor is said to be red-haired, wears a special gauntlet and belt that allows him to lift his hammer, and rides in a chariot pulled by a pair of war goats. Yet we’ve never seen any of that, have we? Odin is said to be as vicious and deceptive as he is wise, a balance of the good and evil that the character in Mortal appears to be, but there’s nothing about him wielding fire, so hopefully the movie says something about this, otherwise it’s bound to remain a mystery that might confuse a lot of people. But yes, it does look like it’s worth a look and it does look as though it could be an interesting prospect if only because it hasn’t been hyped up beyond all belief. It’s also pretty obvious that we won’t see any of the mythological figures that some movies are intent on showing, which is probably for the best since they would take too much away from it.
In a way, this does feel as though it might be a movie to watch once and then put aside until one wants to watch it again, but forgetting it after one viewing doesn’t sound likely.
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