On28August1975, thefilmpremieredatOslo’sKlingenbergcinema.“We
hadno ideahow itwoulddo,”recallsRemo.“Thewholefive-yearproject
hadbeenahugerisk,bothmentallyandeconomically.My fatherwas
exhausted. Itwasmakeorbreak forus–ourhomeswere literallyonthe line–and
sittingdowntowatch itwewerehugelynervous.”
Butthen,aftera fewminutes,peoplestartedto laugh.“Youcould feel the
atmosphere inthe theatrewarmup,andattheendof thefilmpeoplestoodupand
clapped.Weknewthen that thingsweregoingtobeokay.”
The
Morgenbladet
newspaperdulycalled
FlåklypaGrandPrix
“thegreatest
triumph in thehistoryofNorwegiancinema”,andthefilmbecameaphenomenon,
withCaprinoandhisteambuildingarealversionof IlTempoGigantetopromote it.
Today,Remosays that“there’sprobablynotaNorwegianwhohasn’tseen it”,and
claimsaworldrecord forviewing inadomesticmarket. It’snot justNorwaythathas
fallen
forFlåklypa
.Thefilmhasbeentranslated into13 languages,andwasamajor
hit inbothRussiaandJapan,atonepointsimultaneouslyshowing in35Japanese
cinemas.From1975until2003, therewasn’tadaywhenthefilmwasn’tshown ina
cinemasomewhere in theworld. It’shuge inDenmark, too,wheretherelaunched
HDversionof
BjergkøbingGrandPrix
toppedthefilmcharts formonths in2010.
“It’sbeenconsistentlypopular,”saysRemo,whodigitallyrestoredthefilm fora
2005DVDreleaseand2013Blu-rayrelease,andhasalsooverseenaFlåklypavideo
game.“Ifanything, it’sgrowing inpopularity,with theriseofSlowTV. I thinkpeople
are tiredofexplosionsand liketowatchsomethinggentler,especiallyatChristmas.”
Remoadmitsthathedoesn’talwayswatch
FlåklypaGrandPrix
when it’son.
“Butwhen Idowatch, itstill looks likemagic–my fatherhad thisuniquetalent.
What’sevenmoreamazing tome isthe impacthisfilmshavehad.Tothisday, Istill
hearofpeoplewhohavebeen influencedbymy father’sfilms–whohavea
Flåklypa
tattoo,orhaveaLambertdollabovetheirfireplace.Whenmy fatherdied [in2001],
among the thousandsofcondolenceswerepeoplewhosaidtheywouldn’tbealive
withouttheescapehisfilmsoffered.That’sareal tributetohisart.”
caprino.no
NorwegianfliestoOslofromnearly100destinations.Bookflights,ahotelandarental
carfromnorwegian.com
Opposite page
⁄
Thecrewsetupthe
famousracescene;
themodelhilltop
townofFlåklypa,or
Pinchcliffe,which
inthefilmhas its
ownsteam-driven
cheese factory,
campingsite,
localpaperandTV
station; IvoCaprino
settinguphis
cameras
FlåklypaGrandPrix
inpopularculture
The supercar
Swedishcarmaker
Christian von
Koenigseggwas
inspired tomakehis
eponymous supercar
when, aged five, he
watched
Flåklypa
GrandPrix
.
Thequote
SonnyDuckworth
saying, “Well, string
meupand stuffme
inahencoop!”was
voted theNorwegian
filmquoteof the
centuryby national
newspaper readers.
Themusic
A sample from the
film’s soundtrackby
BentFabricius-Bjerre
wasused in
AllRise
,
the2001 single from
BritishboybandBlue.
The roller-
coaster ride
Hunderfossen theme
parknear Lillehammer
has a rollercoaster
ride, Il TempoExtra
Gigante,modelled
after the
Flåklypa
car.
