Entertainment

This true Norwegian drama is taking over Netflix

By Maartje Beks | #!31Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100+01:000931#31Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100+01:00-7Europe\/Amsterdam3131Europe\/Amsterdam202531 07pm31pm-31Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100+01:007Europe\/Amsterdam3131Europe\/Amsterdam2025312025Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100007001pmTuesday=9#!31Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100+01:00Europe\/Amsterdam1#01-07-2025#!31Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100+01:000931#\/31Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100+01:00-7Europe\/Amsterdam3131Europe\/Amsterdam202531#!31Tue, 07 Jan 2025 19:00:09 +0100+01:00Europe\/Amsterdam1#

As a film lover and a bit of a history nerd, I have been able to check off quite a list of war dramas. Especially the (true) stories about the resistance always touch me deeply. The new Norwegian film ‘Nr. 24' has just landed on Netflix and is immediately found in the top ten, which I think is more than deserved. The impressive story is about the greatest resistance hero Norway has ever known: Gunnar Sønsteby.

The hero of Norway

When the Germans invade Norway in 1940, 21-year-old Gunnar Sønsteby decides to join the resistance. His codename: nr. 24. He becomes the leader of the ‘Oslo Gang’, a group of young people who carry out various sabotage actions to oppose the occupier. Soon, Gunnar comes into the enemy's sights and a manhunt is launched against him. At the risk of his own life and with multiple false identities, he manages to outsmart them time and again. His ‘gang’ manages to thwart several German missions and eliminate important figures. Up until the liberation in 1945, Gunnar continues; a struggle that forever makes him the hero of Norway. After the war, he receives (as the only one ever) the Norwegian War Cross, the highest possible military decoration in the country.

Only black and white

In ‘Nr. 24’, you follow Gunnar not only during the war. We also see him as an elderly man giving lectures to high school students. He tells them about his time in the resistance and makes one thing more than clear: even the greatest resistance hero struggles with his conscience. As he himself says: “During war, different rules apply. There is only black and white.” Gunnar also had to do things that still haunt him. Although he would prefer to leave those actions and the war as far behind him as possible, he dedicates the rest of his life to helping others. For 70 years, he supported people struggling with post-war traumas. He also continued to give lectures until shortly before his death. His great goal: to keep informing people about the dangers and impact of World War II. “As long as I live, I will tell the important facts.” Gunnar passed away in 2012 at the age of 94, but remains a hero for Norway to this day.

A true story with an impressive message. ‘Nr. 24’ is now available on Netflix.

Image: MVSRS | Image: Netflix