THE STORY OF "THE COUNT" - A FILM
"Twilight" actor to play Varg Vikernes in forthcoming film. (
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CANNES / OSLO (Dagbladet.no): Come September, the shooting of "Lords of Chaos ", a film chronicling the life of Varg Vikernes and the Norwegian black metal scene, will begin.
The film will be based on the book "Lords of Chaos: The Bloody Rise of the Satanic
Metal Underground "by Didrik Søderlind and Michael Moynihan.
A Humorous Portrayal of Norway
Three years ago, plans had been underway to make the book into a film. However, the producers lacked funding at the time.
Now, however, with funding underway, producer Stuart Pollok of Saltire Entertainment is in Cannes to promote the project.
Why did you choose to make this film?
- It is a fascinating topic, a great visual world to depict, and a fun portrayal of Norway. Black metal is possibly the largest cultural export of Norway in the past twenty years, says Pollok to Dagbladet.no.
A Teen Film
In his manuscript to Norwegian Hans Fjellestad, Pollok has revealed that the film will be based on actual events.
It will be a story of youth and youthful energy, says Pollok, but he emphasises that the film will fall under the teen film category, and that it will be a psychological horror film.
"Lords of Chaos" is to be directed by the avant-garde Japanese director, Sion Sono. Sion has won three awards at the Berlin film festival for his works "Ai no mukidashi" (愛のむきだし) and "Kimyô na sâkasu" (奇妙なサーカス).
"Lords of Chaos" will be his first English film.
From a Vampire to the Count
The film's lead role of Varg Vikernes will be played by Jackson Rathbone of "Twilight" fame. Rathbone, however, has expressed concern that the shooting of the third "Twilight" film may delay the filming of "Lords of Chaos".
Rathbone also played the lead role in "The Last Airbender" by M. Night Shyamalan, which will premiere next year. As "Lords of Chaos" comes to the theatres, then, Rathbone will be taking his step from being a simple actor to a Hollywood star.
Pollok confirmed to Dagbladet.no that he will also be casting Norwegian actors.
Sentenced for Murder
On May 16th, 1994, Vikernes was sentenced to 21 years in prison for the murder of Øystein
Aarseth. His criminal records include the burning of the Åsane Church in Bergen, the Skjold Church in Vindafjord, and the Holmenkollen Chapel in Oslo, as well as attempts to burn down the Stortveit Church in Bergen.
In March, Vikernes told Dagbladet that he was soon to be discharged on parole.
"Lords of Chaos", the book on which the film will be based, is subject to controversy within the Norwegian black metal scene. Vikernes has spoken out against some of the claims that were made about him and the black metal scene:
All of the claims and statements made in this book are either misinterpreted, taken out of context, confused, defamatory lies, have been subject to extreme exaggeration, and/or information from unreliable third parties, wrote Vikernes from Ringerike prison in 2004.
Has Varg Vikernes stated that he is not supportive of this project?
The events that came to pass are interesting and fascinating, said Pollok.
Svein Andresen of Film Camp, responsible for the Norwegian recording locations and production, stated thus:
What happened has been widely known to the public for a long time, and is now known worldwide. This was a gang that declared war on society. Actually, it is not surprising that Norwegian filmmakers have picked up on this piece of history.
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