Suicide Mission

This 1950s British-Norwegian co-production dramatises true-life heroism during the Second World War. What's more, many of the Norwegian performers on screen actually served in the covert fleet of fishing boats traversing the North Sea. As they ferried arms and military personnel between Norway and Shetland, the sailors were dangerously exposed to Nazi fighter planes. Bringing a slightly forgotten corner of the conflict to light makes this of interest to history buffs, and the film's semi-documentary approach lends it an authenticity notable among British war movies from the era. The viewer does have to persevere with the functional dialogue and steady pacing. But the integration of location filming, studio inserts and archive footage can be striking, especially during a bracing sequence of a lightly armed trawler getting strafed by the Luftwaffe. The Norwegian commander is played by Leif Larsen - a highly decorated war hero dubbed "Shetlands Larsen" - who brings an imposing square-jawed presence to the proceedings.