Used to be a time when Netflix original movies were a big deal. Back in the days of Beasts of no nation Y okja, these were great events. Now, original content is being added to Netflix’s cavernous archives every day with little to no fanfare, which means some truly incredible hidden gems are slipping by the daily scrolling viewer.
But if you know where to look, you can find great movies that deserve more than a recommendation, like this Norwegian alien comedy that was quietly added over the summer. It barely caught the eye, but could easily stand next to the great sci-fi classics like shaun of the dead.
this is why Damned is a must-watch Netflix original and what you need to know before you dive in.
On June 28, Netflix released Damned, a Norwegian sci-fi action comedy. It begins like many sibling comedies before it: a stag weekend in a forest known for its UFO sightings, with groom-to-be Sebastian surrounded by his friends from all walks of life: his two friends from work Audun and Pelle, your boss. Kaspar and his childhood best friend, Mikkel.
Mikkel and Sebastian used to be champion laser-tag players (this is obviously crucial to the plot later), but now that Sebastian has moved on and is climbing the corporate ladder, there’s a bit of a disconnect between the two friends. Sebastian isn’t even that impressed when Mikkel shows him the fancy laser vests and weapons he imported from Japan.
The gang decides to go play paintball, but when a friendly shot of paint hits a strange-looking stranger, they realize there’s no need for mock combat: green-eyed aliens are turning unsuspecting citizens into soldiers of war. on foot looking like zombies. The solution? They seek the help of a very pregnant police officer named Hjørdis (obviously inspired by Frances McDormand in Fargo).
Those pop culture references abound in Blasted. The tone is so reminiscent of the golden age of brother comedy in the late 2000s that the delicious references to Teslas and Joe Exotic seem almost jarring. Mid-budget theatrical comedy is getting rarer and rarer these days, so old-fashioned jokes and general bits are surprisingly refreshing.
And then there is the action. The “unusual weapon against alien species” trope is wearing thin at this point, but you can’t make a movie about laser tag wunderkind without making laser guns deadly to oncoming aliens. Yes, this movie hits a lot of the beats of alien combat survival movies, but with the seriousness this movie offers, it’s more “comfortably familiar” than “repetitive and tired.”
Blasted is a throwback to a simpler time, when all a movie needed to succeed was a cast of brothers and an unusual circumstance, a good CGI monster, and a fjord full of one-liners. No big names (at least, not to the American viewer), just an indie movie sensation with a blockbuster premise. It’s this balance that makes Netflix Originals great: we get access to international movies with big ideas that we’d never see otherwise. Blasted is the platonic ideal of this concept.
Damned It is now streaming on Netflix.