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At least here in the US, shows about intelligence operatives fighting terrorism seem so 2011, at least on cable and streaming. But in Israel and Europe, it’s still a topic of interest for writers and producers. A new Netflix series, which divides its time between Norway and Israel, may sound like it’s from a recent past, but it gives viewers a twist or two along the way.
Opening shot: A couple stops in front of a building in Oslo.
The essential: Alex Bakke (Anneke von der Lippe) and Karl (Anders T. Andersen) are there to surprise their daughter Pia (Andrea Berntzen) on her birthday. They knock on the door of her apartment, but discover that Pia is not there; the friend who takes care of her says that she is in Israel. The fact that she went there and said nothing makes Alex feel like the fight they had a few weeks ago really ruined their relationship.
In Sinai, Pia is on the beach with her friends Nadav (Daniel Litman) and Noa Solomon (Shira Yosef). She is having a good time; Nadav and his sister serenade him on his birthday. But we also see her being spied on through binoculars. On their way back to their place of residence, the trio are kidnapped by ISIS operatives.
Alex, after not hearing from Pia for days, decides to travel to Israel to find out what happened. The first place she visits is the Intelligence Ministry, where her old friend Arik (Amos Tamam), the Israeli intelligence minister is. Alex was a diplomat who worked with Arik during the Oslo Accords in 1992. She asks him to do her a favor and find out where Pia could have gone. She goes to Pia’s hotel to investigate, but Arik soon learns the bad news of the kidnapping.
ISIS is seeking an exchange of prisoners, including 12 Palestinians held by Israel and Abu Salim (Abhin Galeya), who is being held in Norway. Alex and Karl both see the video where Pia is forced to make demands for her captors. Alex tells her husband, a judge, to stay in Oslo and pressure the government to release Salim, although it is the government’s official position not to negotiate with the terrorists. Arik, on the other hand, must consider whether he should proceed with the exchange – which leads some of the prisoners to revert to their previous terrorist activities – or go looking for them, in the hopes of avoiding casualties.
When a member of the Norwegian Embassy tells Alex that they are basically waiting to see what the Israeli government can do, Alex pulls the information that led to the split with Pia. She goes to Arik, married with two children, and tells him that Pia is actually his daughter.
What shows will this remind you of? The Oslo Girl (original title: Bortført) has nuances of Country and Fauda, but much more simplistic.
Our opinion : There is something about The Oslo Girl it looks like a show that was done somewhere around 2011 and put in storage until now. On the one hand, the plots involving ISIS, even though the organization is still very active in real life, now appear to be outdated. But, the other aspect that makes the series look dated is its stance in black and white.
We have the innocent young woman, white as a lily, kidnapped by the big and bad Islamic terrorists. Then we have her diplomat mother determined to free her at all costs. And the nice big guy from Israeli intelligence who helps him. It seems like a more or less straightforward story, even with Lily’s lineage adjustable wrench. It wasn’t even a big shock that Arik was Lily’s real father, considering Alex dropped such a big bombshell with Pia that the two fell out.
The plot will become more complicated as Abu Salim tries to be freed as part of the exchange and rescue missions are launched. But, at the end of the day, it’s still a good-bad story that we feel like we’ve seen so many times before, on shows from the US, Israel, and Europe.
Gender and skin: Nothing.
Starting shot: During transport, the kidnapper’s truck broke down. Nadav tells Noa and Pia that this is their opportunity to run. Noa manages to escape, but Pia and Nadav are reloaded into the truck.
Sleeper Star: None that we could find.
Most of the pilot lines: Alex asks Arik what he would do if his daughter was among the ISIS captives. When he replies that he would do anything to free her, here is Alex’s response: âYou have a kidnapped child. This is how she tells him that Pia is his daughter. Talk about passive-aggressive.
Our call: TO JUMP. While the episodes of The Oslo Girl are around 30 minutes each, the plot is so basic and predictable that you’d better find much better shows with similar themes, like Fauda.
Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting, and tech, but he’s not kidding himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writings have appeared in The New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.
Flux The Oslo Girl On Netflix
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