Is ‘Narvik’ on Netflix Based on a True Story?

Narvik premiered on Netflix earlier this week and has already captured everybody’s attention. The movie is currently occupying the No. 1 slot in Netflix’s Top 10 movies in the United States. Set to the backdrop of WWII, this Norwegian drama is gripping viewers with its captivating story, leaving us all wondering if it’s rooted in real life.

Directed by Erik Skjoldbjærg, the movie follows a Norwegian soldier as he returns home from battle to a surprise from his wife. Decider’s John Serba wrote in hisNarvik review, “Narvik is a perfectly serviceable wartime drama, nothing more, nothing less,” and praised the balancing of two storylines.

Serba noted that the film stands out for its “story of a woman fighting a quiet war to keep her family alive, and carrying the omnipresent cognitive dissonance of clashing ideologies inside her at all times.”

Like any wartime drama, we’re all wondering if any of the story is inspired by events that really went down. Here’s everything we know about the origins of Narvik.

Is Narvik Based on a True Story?

Narvik takes place during World War II when Hitler’s forces were moving across Europe. As the title suggests, it focuses on the real-life Battle of Narvik, which occurred in 1940 from April 9 through June 8, and resulted in German victory. But what about the nitty-gritty details? Is the Tofte family real? Netflix’s Tudum states that the movie family is not real, but they “represent the many Norwegian families caught up both in the Battle of Narvik and the years of war that followed.”

However, there are details from the movie which have been lifted from the real war. Tudum explains, “Narvik depicts a number of events from the two-month conflict, including bombardments targeting German targets in town by British warships offshore and the advance on Narvik by Norwegian, French, British and Polish infantry stationed in the snowy mountains surrounding the fjord.”

The character Generalleutnant Eduard Dietl is based on the real-life Nazi general with the same name. In the film, he is portrayed by German actor Holger Handtke.

So, there’s your answer! A little bit is real, a little bit is fake – much like most historical dramas.