Norsk Hydro / Operation Gunnerside – three movies

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What would have happened if the Nazis had developed the Atom Bomb? The results are there for us to see in the superb alternate history TV series, The Man in the High Castle, which ran for four seasons from 2015 to 2019 (and is available on Amazon Prime). Though the Philip K Dick book placed the action in 1961, the series extended it further with both Germany and Japan at loggerheads and Germany about to decimate Japan and the world with ICBMs loaded with atomic warheads. With their crackpot racial theories combined with “ancient Aryan civilisation and purity”, large tracts of the world would have been turned into an atomic-radiated landscape. Such consistent mass extermination would have resulted in a “world of Blonde Supermen led by a brunette dictator” (as Charlie Chaplin mocked Hitler in The Great Dictator)

 

Except that it didn’t happen for two “broad’ reasons. 

 

Firstly, Hitler was against “Jewish science” and Jewish scientists. Seeing the writing on the wall, many scientists emigrated. Some landed in the UK and others in the USA, thus initiating the Manhattan Project that later became the atomic bomb under the brilliant leadership of Robert Oppenheimer. (That one of the emigrants, Klaus Fuchs, gave the plans to the Soviet Union, lock, stock and barrel, is beyond the scope of this discussion)

 

Secondly, the Nazis required “Heavy Water” D2O – Deuterium Oxide – as a moderator, which prevents a runaway nuclear reaction.  Nazi Germany’s invasion of Norway – to secure the supply of iron ore from Sweden – gave them access to the world’s largest supply of Heavy Water, from Norsk Hydro. So, they increased the production capacity, word of which reached the Norwegian Resistance, who passed it on to their Government-in-exile, in London. The word went out – destroy the plant.

 

The first team was sent out to await a second team of paratroopers and engineers, which crashed in a blinding snowstorm. The crash survivors were shot ruthlessly due to “Hitler’s Commando Order” The forewarned Nazis doubled the guards and patrols in the factory at Vemork, near Ryukan town. Other teams were dropped miles away and then told to finish the job. Seeing that the plant was subject to repeated sabotage attempts and repeated raids, the Nazis decided to shift all the equipment and the remaining Heavy Water by ferry to Germany. That, too, was sunk, though it resulted in the deaths of innocent passengers and the crew. The Germans finally gave up their quest for an Atomic Bomb.

 

Though Norway was fully occupied by Germany and had a highly collaborative Norwegian Puppet Government with “Leader” Vidkun Quisling (whose name has since become synonymous with Puppet Governments), the highly effective Norwegian Resistance carried out repeated acts of sabotage that more or less ended the German quest for the Atom Bomb

 

The three films that deal with the topic have widely varying styles. 

 

Kampen om tungtvannet (Operation Swallow: Battle for Heavy Water) (1948)

 

Genre – War Movie (true story)

Language – Norwegian, French, German, English 

Time: 2 Hours 

Platform: YouTube

 

    

The earliest effort was a Norwegian film, “Kampen om tungtvannet” (Operation Swallow: Battle for Heavy Water) (1948), which had the actual commandos who participated in the raid playing themselves.  The film plays more like docu-drama with most scenes having a background commentary. As said earlier, most of the “actors” in the commando team are the original men from the various teams that carried out the actual sabotag while other roles are played by professional actors.It is easy to see how the missions were accomplished despite the forbidding harsh, Norwegian terrain.

 

The “film” – takes a holistic look at the overall situation from 1939 – 1944. The 2015 TV Mini Series (described later) is far more dramatic and interesting. 

 

Unfortunately, not all the French and German dialogues have English subtitles. The Norwegian dialogues and narration have English subtitles. 

 It is free on YouTube (and is in black and white).

 

 Real History/ Historical Background – 4 out of 5 

Script – 4 out of 5

Story – 4 out of 5

Direction – 4 out of 5

Photography – 3 out of 5

 

 Total – 3.8 out of 5

 

 

The Heroes of Telemark – 1965

 

Genre – War Movie (true story)

Language – English

Time: 2 Hours 10 minutes

Platform: YouTube

 

 

This is a pure Hollywood star-driven vehicle. To be fair,  The Heroes of Telemark, is interesting. The star power sometimes has an advantage. Shot in Norwegian locations, it is a bit disconcerting to see American accents for characters named Pedersen, Straud and so on. Also, it is concerned only with the two later sabotage efforts. Pedersen (Kirk Douglas), the ‘hero” who is not interested in the war, suddenly gives up his womanising ways and helps the resistance leader Straud (Richard Harriss) get the job done. Naturally, it’s Douglas all the way. When the last batch of Heavy water is shipped on a ferry, Douglas boards the ferry and plants a bomb that will sink the ferry but heroically rescues the passengers from the sinking ferry, which is nothing but “Pure Hollywood” (decent Americans rescue helpless passengers, right?).  Still, it’s an engaging action drama. 

 

The movie is available for free on YouTube

 

 

 

Real History/ Historical Background – 3 out of 5 

Script – 3 out of 5

Story – 4 out of 5

Direction – 4 out of 5

Photography – 4 out of 5

 

 Total – 3.6 out of 5

 

 

 

 Kampen Om Tungtvannet aka The Heavy Water War – 2015

 

 

Genre – War Movie (true story)

Language – Norwegian, German, English

Time: 6 Hours (Six episodes of 55 minutes each)

Platform: Amazon Prime 

 

This is probably the best and most authentic recreation of the entire campaign,  starting from the early days of atomic research in thr 1920s, the Nazis coming of age, the turbulent years from  1939 till the final blowing up of the ferry carrying the last shipments of Heavy Water in 1943. The six-part mini-series is true to the history of the entire campaign and is a slow-paced but riveting watch. It shows the failed paratrooper assault (Operation Freshman) that resulted in the crash of their gliders. It also depicts the earlier efforts by the French to acquire the entire stock before the Nazi Invasion of Norway and the Norsk Hydro Director’s dilemma – do his job, thus helping the enemy or resist passively by overlooking some of the resistance activities while under increasing pressure from the Nazi overlords. It also shows the somewhat shambolic Nazi efforts.

 

The first team, Grouse, is dropped miles from their target area and soon faces starvation in the barren frozen landscape. The second effort is Operation Freshman, and it is shown as the disaster that it turned out to be with the wounded survivors being shot mercilessly. Things get moving when the third team, Gunnerside, lands and teams up with the second team, Grouse. The actual approach through the deep ravine, through the thick forest and then a disused railway line into the factory is historically accurate. The destruction is done within 30 seconds, and no heroics or firefights. Plant the plastic explosives. Light the fuse. Off they go. Lastly, when the ferry is blown up, none of the team members are nearby. 

 

Meticulous attention has been paid to getting the uniforms, tactics, etc, absolutely accurate. For example, before the side doors of the Dakota were available, all parachute jumps had to be done through a hole cut in the floor of the plane, which was usually obsolete bombers like the Whitley, Halifax. The teams are being shown dropping from a (excellent CGI) Halifax. Living off the land leads to starvation for the team – the actors really look sick. Simultaneously, the German efforts, led by Werner Heisenberg, are also shown to give an overall perspective of the entire campaign to acquire the Atomic Bomb and how a few Norwegians achieved a result far above their team strength.  

 

It’s available on Amazon Prime for rent (the first episode is free). 

 

 

 

Real History/ Historical Background – 5 out of 5 

Script – 5 out of 5

Story – 4 out of 5

Direction – 5 out of 5

Photography – 4 out of 5

 

 Total – 4.6 out of 5