Sankari_Suomi
A Swedish schoolgirl has been killed, and she's just good looking enough to make people care. Who is the culprit? Nobody knows. Could it be the local dodgy geezer? Quite possibly, but also possibly not. Whatever the case, the authorities are convinced of his guilt.Can Detective Erik Bäckström reach the truth of this mystery before the police send an innocent man to prison? Will Niklas finally give up his obsession? Who cleaned out the hunting cottage of the local police chief? Why is Torsten such a dick?I rate Jägarna II at 26.64 on the Haglee Scale, which works out as a chilling 8/10 on IMDB.
Leofwine_draca
FALSE TRAIL, a Swedish slice of crime noir, is a follow up to 1996's THE HUNTERS, and sees returning protagonist Erik Backstrom (Rolf Lassgard) back to solve more crimes in the chilly Scandinavian wilderness. Well, it took them fifteen years to make a sequel, but the wait was worth it: I find this to be a superior follow up in terms of excitement, thriller aspects, and pacing.THE HUNTERS was a similarly-plotted story but had a different style of execution: it was darker, more of a family tragedy, and rather depressing. FALSE TRAIL is equally dark but has more of a conventional detective feel to it, a battle of wits between good and evil. Some viewers will find it the lesser piece, but I preferred it. It helps that Peter Stormare (FARGO) has a huge and complex role and is absolutely fantastic in it, the best work yet I've seen from the actor.Inevitably, the taciturn and grumpy Backstrom is the film's guiding force, and Lassgard is a delight to watch as ever. The production values are better than ever, and Kjell Sundvall seems to have really grown as a director, crafting a well-polished and exciting thriller in which the stakes are never less than high. Unpredictable, involving, and harrowing, FALSE TRAIL is one to watch.
OJT
There's been 15 years since the first "Jegerne" ("The Hunters), and it's very understandable that there was to be a follow up many years later. This is the finest of thrillers made by the Swedes. Kjell Sundvall has directed both, and that's probably why both th first and the second is almost equally good. The story is different, of course, but the feel and the tension is the same. The film never slips when it comes to make a tense feeling.This is the most true of sequels. We meet the same people 15 years later, where a policeman's family was involved in a murder. All these years later he is ordered back, after a young girl has gone missing.Both films is kept in the same tone. This is brilliantly done. It makes a kind of rural tension. Somewhere where bans between village people are so tight that no one dares speak up. We're in the rural North of Sweden, where hunting is an everyday event. The film depicts the nature and landscape in a beautiful way, and weaves this into the story.We feel the tension all along, and this tension is what makes the films such a treat. The actors are great, where both Rolf Lassgård and Peter Stormare are as good here as in the first. Fine actors. The first film was never forgotten. Not even outside of Sweden. That's why many also was drawn to this continuation many years later. It could've all gone wrong, this follow up. It doesn't, due to fine script writing, great acting, good instruction as well as the Swedish nature.
Christoffer Slotte (JCS-3)
Sundvall's movies often deal with the same theme: A lone person fighting against an evil establishment. Nevertheless, he always succeeds in making great movies. This movie, too, was very exciting and very intense. It was even more intense then Jägarna 1, its predecessor. The acting was first- rate. Especially Lassgård and Stormare did absolutely magnificent jobs.The nature sceneries were great to watch, too, especially for me who have never yet seen that part of Sweden or Finland.I'm most likely going to buy this one when it is (very soon) released on DVD and blu-ray.