Several scenes in the movie show how German soldiers treat Norwegian soldiers taken captive in the mountains around Narvik. These scenes match the actual treatment of the around 400 Norwegian prisoners of war (POWs) taken during the battle. Many of the Norwegian POWs were wounded, and in captivity they receive too little food, and are treated brutally. Several POWs are forced to carry supplies, weapons, and ammunition to the German frontlines. German reports describe how weapons malfunction, probably from airdrops. The Norwegian POWs tell a different story: They sabotage German weapons and ammunitions whenever they get a chance. The POWs are also put to retrive wounded and dead German soldiers. On the front the POWs are exposed to gunfire and bombardment by Norwegian and Allied soldiers, with their lives at stake.

The Geneva Convention on POWs (the third Geneva convention, signed in 1929) holds that POWs shall not perform military tasks. In other words, this use of POWs violates the rules of war, which state clearly what rights POWs have, and how they are to be treated and protected. Treatment that violates POWs right to protection, as the Geneva Conventions confirm, is observed in wars and conflicts the world over, even today.

Why are the rules not followed, even though most countries have committed to following them?

In the movie, soldiers are exposed to both physical and psychological stress. They are surrounded by dead and wounded, and several are taken prisoner during the battle. The strains young men are subjected to in war, contribute to many withdrawing choosing to escape both during and after the attack of April 9^th 1940. Some give up before the fighting even starts. Discouragement and despair spread, and they see no chance of Norway resisting the overwhelming German power. They want to get to safety. Some flee because they are afraid of being mobilised and drawn into the war, regardless of which side it would be on. Others want to spare their families the strain of having a father or son who is a soldier, with all the uncertainty it may bring to those at home.

We know that the North Norwegian defence forces largely manage to stick together through the 62 days of war, despite taking casualties, and experiencing desertion. Many young men are willing to risk everything for their country during WW2, not unlike the situation of many young people in various parts of the world today. In 1940, the conflict and the enemy were clearly defined. Today, the distinction between friend and enemy in war is more blurred. The common denominator, though, is the insecure situation that arises when someone has to take up arms to defend what they hold to be a just cause.

To whom would you be loyal in a war?

The pressure Ingrid, the main character, is under, illustrates well how many civilians had to navigate difficult situations during the battle of Narvik. She is pressed from all directions, expected to do the right thing, as considered by the different parties. At the same time, she has to keep her job and do everything she can to save her closest ones. Ingrid is an illustration of how, during wartime, it is impossible for a person to control all the factors that influence her situation. She is pulled in different directions, and has to make hard choices.

After WW2, a host of people are punished for their actions during the war. Nearly 50,000 are convicted in the Treason and Collaboration Trails. But many of them had manoeuvred in a grey area between ‘Us’ and ‘Them’, and are convicted outside of the legal system. Not to prison time or to pay large fines, but to years of contempt, hate and and shame. Examples include women who had had German boyfriends, and therefore shown undignified behaviour, men who had accepted employment for the Germans or not ‘done their duty’, and thousands of children who had been born of a Norwegian mother and German father.

How far would you be willing to go to adapt to an occupational power?

The quote is from Ole in the movie, who is traumatised and injured by the bombing of Narvik. The wartime consequences for civilians in the movie are recognisable. Many flee the city or seek shelter in the railway tunnel during the raids. Many civilians in and around Narvik die as a consequence of the 62 days of war, most of them as a result of Allied bombing.

When British war ships attack Bjerkvik on May 13^th 1940, it is founded on information claiming that the Germans are there. But the information is several days old. The Germans have left Bjerkvik, leaving the civilian population behind. Bjerkvik is heavily bombarded from the sea by the British who think they are hitting Germans. People desperately try to signal to the British to stop. But the bombing only stops when civilians from Bjerkvik start rowing head on towards the ships. At that time, close to 180 houses are on fire, and 14 civilians have perished.

Never before have civilian casualties in war been as many as during WW2. It demonstrates the importance of securing the protection of civilians. The Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War was adopted in 1949. Despite most countries today having committed to the convention, we see numbers of refugees and forced migrants today equalling the numbers during WW2.

What do you think it would take to justify the killing of civilians to achieve a military goal?