TheLurkingFox

Just been to the avant-premiere in Paris: The movie is absolutely magical. Not to oversell it, but it's a must-see. It's funny but very moving, with a perfect blend of "comedy" and seriousness (because these were dark times, both for the miners and the gay community). The dialogues are really good, well though-out, and delivered convincingly by a stellar cast, who are always believable in their roles.

It's not just "good for an indie gay movie" - it's an incredibly powerful movie that ranks right up with the best of them this year (and with stars such as Bill Nighy and Imelda Satunton, and a probably fair budget, it doesn't have an "amateur" / "indie" feel at all either).

Anyway, worth the price of admission (unlike, unfortunately, so many movies these days...)

Let's be honest: Many Icelandic movies are definitely "acquired taste", and are not of much interest to most people unless they're into Iceland.

That is NOT the case with this movie. It's an awesome story, with incredible characters, and you don't need to know anything about Iceland or even be interested in Iceland to get it. It's based on a TV series, but I hadn't seen it before and didn't need to. I'm sure I probably missed some jokes, but it really wasn't a problem. I just read a description of the movie before reading it, which helped, but that's not even necessary. Also, the ending was great and really satisfying.

As cliché as it sounds, this movie made me laugh and made me cry. I hope it gets sold in international markets because it's a really, really good standard bearer for Icelandic cinema. I don't often give out 10s, but this movie really deserved it.

Compared to the first episode of the saga (although the plot has nothing to do with this one's) - it's obvious there's more budget, and that makes for much better camera work and costumes.

Also, (and although budget shouldn't have anything to do with it), now there's a plot. The same theme (revenge) is treated in a much more interesting way here. One key way in which this movie is more effective is that we get to know the character(s) before they die. We see treason. Therefore when the main character wants revenge, it doesn't seem completely gratuitous: We actually understand his motives and even root for him.

The "Christianity in Iceland" theme, which was already here in the precedent movie, is also much more interestingly developed. Trausti is a believable "convert": He professes his Christianity and he wants to believe in "Jesus Christ" but in the end he is a Norseman who (presumably) grew up with Nordic beliefs. He believes in Vengeance, he believes in Jesus Christ but isn't entirely indifferent to Odin (and for someone raised in a polytheistic faith this is only natural).

It doesn't hurt that (most of) the first movie's ridiculous synth-peruvian-flute score has been abandoned in favour of more time-appropriate medieval tunes. The camera work is also much better, with beautiful landscapes and the feeling that Iceland is bigger than *that one shore*.

All around a surprisingly good movie (even though the best Viking movie around in my opinion still is, by far, Utlaginn).