Mortal 2020

In the dense forests of Vestland, the quiet life of Eric Bergland is marked by distance from civilization and a mounting, unsettling tension. Nat Wolff portrays Eric, a young Norwegian-American whose isolation hides a volatile secret. When a confrontation with a group of teenagers in a field ends in tragedy—one youth dies after grabbing him despite Eric’s warnings—the story pivots on how quickly fear, anger, and the unknown can collide.

Eric isn’t just unlucky in crowd dynamics; he has a long, troubling history with the local authorities. A level-headed police officer named Henrik becomes his caretaker in the moment of crisis, and the events of three years earlier—an unresolved farm fire—linger in the background. Henrik, played by Per Frisch, calls in the help of a calm, observant psychologist, Christine, portrayed by Iben Akerlie, to interrogate and understand the taciturn outsider. As Christine digs deeper, it becomes clear that Eric is shadowed by a severe anxiety disorder that can trigger uncontrollable, supernatural powers when he feels cornered or overwhelmed. The tension builds not only around what he can do, but why these abilities awaken in him at times he cannot predict.

A panic-driven disaster follows when Eric destroys the police station during another outburst, and he is subsequently handed over to agents from the US embassy, led by Cora Hathaway, a figure of authority and consequence brought to life by Priyanka Bose. The transfer is interrupted by a sudden, violent setback: the helicopter ferrying the prisoners crashes into a fjord, scattering the international team and leaving Eric and Christine to navigate their next moves through the fog of fear and confusion.

Seeking shelter and answers, Eric and Christine flee together, their uneasy partnership turning into a fragile alliance. As they move, Eric’s visions grow stranger and more insistent, and Christine’s early hesitation begins to fade as she becomes a rare anchor for his drifting power. Their flight leads them toward a confrontation on the imposing Hardanger Bridge, where Norwegian forces block their path. The moment tests their resolve and the resilience of a growing trust between them; Christine is briefly arrested during a tense attempt at mediation, and Eric’s rage erupts once more, conjuring a fierce thunderstorm that drains his strength and forces him into exhaustion.

Back in the hospital, the powers that once felt protective now threaten to overwhelm him. An unintended power surge causes a blackout, adding to the sense of peril as a boy’s life hangs in the balance. In that moment of crisis, Eric shows a humanity that seems to be his true power: the ability to reach out and help another, even as he fights against the limits of his own control. Henrik reappears as a stabilizing ally, recognizing that the danger is not just to Eric but to those around him, and his pragmatic approach helps steer them toward a potential way forward.

Media speculation swirls that Eric’s abilities hint at a Norse heritage, perhaps a descendent of the legendary Thor. This rumor pushes Henrik to take Eric and Christine toward a fabled site—the ruined memory of Asgard—said to be located on the very farm Eric burned down years earlier. The pursuit of answers here becomes a cat-and-mouse game, as the US emissaries prepare a deadly ambush at the same site, intent on controlling or curbing the mysterious power that could redefine the balance of power in the region.

As the two sides converge at the ruins, the truth of Eric’s heritage, his fear, and his astonishing capabilities collide in a final, tragic showdown. The clash tests loyalty, love, and the limits of human endurance, culminating in a moment that is as devastating as it is revealing. Through it all, the story remains anchored in a quiet, observant tone that refuses to sensationalize the extraordinary, instead focusing on the impact of fear, the burden of power, and the possibility of unlikely alliances in the face of overwhelming danger.