Film review: Mountain Queen

Image courtesy of Films of Norway
Norway’s beloved Queen Sonja is an avid hiker. You can follow her on her summer journey, as she explores the wondrous beauty of Norway’s nature.

GEIR MÆLAND
Films of Norway

If you have seen Atlantic Crossing, you already have had a peek into a bit of the history from the royal family in Norway. Of course, the times where different back in the wartime, but I think there are similarities, as today’s royalty in Norway are a family, people, just in a different time.

Mountain Queen is documentary about our present-day queen, Sonja, and her passion for nature, featuring her trips around Norway and its mountains. It was produced in 2014, so it’s not “just made.” The story would be the same, though, if it were made last year, as the places and mountains are the same. I would say that even Queen Sonja looks the same today as back then. 

Queen Sonja is, as we know, a popular person, and I think that this “up close and personal” documentary gives us an idea of where this popularity comes from.

Our queen has the perfect balance of high-class elegance and at the same time has mastered the presence of being down to earth as “one of us.” As this movie reveals, there is no doubt that she loves being out in nature, being active and athletic in the same way as many Norwegians, and that is one of the reasons why so many people respect her and her lifestyle. She could, of course, have chosen to be a champagne-sipping queen in very expensive dresses, appearing at exclusive parties only … but no, not this one: She has deep interest for not only nature, but also for art (she paints and supports other artist and art galleries, but that is another story).

If you decide to watch this documentary, you will get a close encounter with this side of Queen Sonja, the mountain queen, but also a deeper understanding of why she often also is called the queen of the people. 

Happy streaming at filmsofnorway.com!

Director: Oddgeir Bruaset

Photography: Tor Sivertstøl, Brede Røsjø, Andreas Sundby

Producer:  NRK

Year: 2014

Run time: 58 min

Genre: Documentary

This article originally appeared in the July 9, 2021, issue of The Norwegian American. To subscribe, visit SUBSCRIBE or call us at (206) 784-4617.