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Could it finally be Norway’s turn at the Oscars?

The Local Norway
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Could it finally be Norway’s turn at the Oscars?
'Kongens nei' is on the shortlist for the best foreign-language film. Photo: Paradox Film

The Norwegian film ‘Kongens nei’ (English title: The King’s Choice) is one of nine movies to make the short list for the best foreign-language film at next year’s Academy Awards, Variety reported.

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Director Erik Poppe’s film about King Haakon VII’s resistance to the Nazi invasion of Norway made the cut from the original list of 85 submissions. 
 
It will compete with fellow Scandinavian films ‘Under Sanden’ (Denmark) and ‘En mann ved navn Ove’ (Sweden) as well as feature films from Australia, Canada, Germany, Iran, Russia and Switzerland. 
 
Only five of the nine will be presented as official nominees on January 24th. The Oscars will then be handed out on February 6th in Los Angeles. 
 
‘Kongens nei’ will vie to be the sixth Norwegian nominee for the Best Foreign Language Film. The previous nominees were ‘Ni liv’ in 1957, ‘Veiviseren’ in 1987, ‘Søndagsengler’ in 1996, ‘Elling’ in 2001 and ‘Kon-Tiki’ in 2012. None of those managed to take home the Oscar, so ‘Kongens nei’ has a chance to make Norwegian film history. 
 
However, it will face stiff competition from the Danish entry ‘Under Sanden’ (English title: Land of Mine) which is tipped as an early favourite. It tells the story of a group of German POWs who are made to clear Danish beaches of Nazi mines following the war. 
 
The German entry ‘Toni Erdmann’ is also a clear favourite, with the comedy winning best film, director, actress, actor and screenwriter at the European Film Awards earlier this month. 
 
 

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