Iceland

There is very little information available online on this little gem, the first ‘feature-length’ film shot exclusively in Iceland by an Icelandic director, the pioneer Loftur Guðmundsson. Director and crew travelled all around the country with the ambitious goal of documenting all the aspects of the local life at the time. Fishing plays an important role (being then, by far, the number one national industry); one can also witness the humble beginnings of ‘city-life’ in the capital, one of the first (or was it the very first?) cars driving in Iceland, beautiful pastoral shots of farm-lands, ladies posing in the national costume, as well as fighters indulging in the national sport, ‘glyma’. The 21st century traveller will be able to recognize a number of landmarks. The images are often naive, genuine, and captivating. In my opinion one of the most valuable Icelandic films. –EwolveRead More »

Since his mother wants to watch TV, Axel, a young auto-mechanic, must recover her remote control, accidentally taken by his punk sister Maja. During his quest, he becomes involved in the conflict between Moli, the liquor smuggler, and Aggi, a night club owner who wants to be Iceland’s first mafia boss.Read More »

Quote:
Back Soon is a shift from the serious tone of Solveig Anspach’s previous films to something much more light-hearted. In this off-the-wall comedy, Anna Hallgrimsdottir, in her late thirties, is undergoing an existential crisis. She decides to quit her job, sell her business to the highest bidder, and leave with her two sons… but being a dope dealer, the biggest supplier on the island, complicates things somewhat. Back Soon, an offbeat Scandinavian farce, full of imaginative flights of fancy, reveals a whole new aspect to Solveig Anspach. Following a documentary made in 2001, this is her first fiction feature, a co-production with Iceland, where it was filmed.Read More »

Two women’s lives will intersect while trapped in circumstances unforeseen. Between a struggling Icelandic mother and an asylum seeker from Guinea-Bissau, a delicate bond will form as both strategize to get their lives back on track.Read More »

Synopsis:
Icelandic filmmaker Olafur Sveinsson takes on the challenge of documenting one of his native country’s social ills by focusing on the homeless people taking shelter in the capital city of Reykjavik’s main bus terminal in his 2002 sociological documentary Hlemmur (Last Stop). Most of the people Sveinsson interviewed were either mentally handicapped or grappling with some sort of debilitating addiction, both conditions which obviously had tremendously negative impacts on the subjects’ personal lives and resulted in their social marginalization. Read More »

A young girl from a tiny fishing village in a remote corner of Iceland falls in love with her sister’s boyfriend. After realizing they cannot be together she finds a magical way to escape her isolated world.Read More »

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After a suspicious fatal car accident in Hastings where the identity of the victim was forged, the Quality Life insurance company sends their smart investigator Abe Holt (Forrest Whitaker) to identify the body. The unique beneficiary of the one million dollars death benefit is the sister of the victim, Isold (Julia Stiles), who lives with her son Thor and her husband Fred (Jeremy Renner) in a poor cabin in the middle of nowhere. Along the investigation, Abe discloses the truth about the fraud, but feels sorry for Isold and Thor and tries to help them with tragic consequences.Read More »

From cinemaperspective.com
When filmmakers possess a signature style that can be identified across their body of work, they are sometimes referred to as an auteur of cinema. It’s a term that might get banded around too frequently, but one that is often used when discussing Icelandic visionary Baltasar Kormákur. His latest feature is crime thriller The Oath, a personal project which he amazingly produces, directs, co-writes and stars in. The story follows family man heart surgeon Finnur (Kormákur) who tries to rescue his daughter Anna (Hera Hilmar) from her thuggish boyfriend Óttar (Gísli Örn Garðarsson) when she becomes entangled in his dangerous, criminal lifestyle.Read More »

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A remote fishing village in Iceland. Teenage boys Thor and Christian experience a turbulent summer as one tries to win the heart of a girl while the other discovers new feelings toward his best friend. When summer ends and the harsh nature of Iceland takes back its rights, it’s time to leave the playground and face adulthood.Read More »