The beauty of Nordic noir
What is Nordic noir? Why is it so popular? What makes it unique? Let's talk a little bit about this topic!
Nordic noir, or Scandinavian noir is a genre of crime fiction set in the Nordic countries.
It is usually written from a police point of view and often contains societal critics and comparisons between the seemingly peaceful and quiet surface of the Nordic countries, and the turmoil of rape, murder, racism, etc... underneath. Nordic noir also usually utilizes the landscapes of the Nordic countries to set the mood of the story (which is often bleak).
The term Nordic noir refers to literature, films and television series. The most recent -and popular- TV series examples would be Trapped (Iceland), The Bridge (Swe-DK), The Killing (DK) and Bordertown (Finland).
So why is Nordic noir so popular? What makes it unique, and different for other crime genres?
British crime is often centered on the deed itself, the crime is the main character, while investigators might be secondary. In Nordic noir, it's more about the people. The genre has a no-nonsense, to-the-point approach about the crime, but also about the society surrounding their characters.
Authors such as Henning Mankell or Stieg Larsson wrote in order to shine a light on Sweden's problems with rape, misogyny, and racism. The investigators and the characters in these books were central to denounce these problems - the crime in the story is included in this broader picture.
Maybe that is the key to Nordic noir's popularity.
Links:
https://drama.uktv.co.uk/wallander/article/nordic-noir-so-addictive/
All images are from Unsplash.