Þrestir
Directed by:
Rúnar RúnarssonScreenplay:
Rúnar RúnarssonCinematography:
Sophia OlssonComposer:
Kjartan SveinssonCast:
Atli Óskar Fjalarsson, Ingvar Sigurðsson, Rakel Björk Björnsdóttir, Rade Serbedzija, Nanna Kristín Magnúsdóttir, Kristbjörg Kjeld, Pálmi Gestsson (more)Plots(1)
Sixteen-year-old Ari (Atli Óskar Fjalarsson) enjoys a vibrant and enjoyable life in Reykjavik. But when his mother leaves for Angola with her new husband, he must return to his hometown, a sparsely populated fishing village where his father Gunnar (Ingvar E. Sigurdsson) still lives like a teenager, pissing away his weekends with drug-and-booze-fuelled bacchanals. Gunnar hasn't shown any interest in Ari for years and has no idea how to relate to him, and little desire to either. The only bright spots for Ari in his grim new surroundings are his ailing grandmother and his childhood buddy Lana (Rakel Björk Björnsdóttir), who is in a relationship with a dimwitted local thug. As Ari tries to settle in, things get more difficult - and when he realizes just how deep this town's immoral streak runs, he is forced to choose between telling the truth and protecting those he loves. (Toronto International Film Festival)
(more)Reviews (2)
Growing up of a city boy in the Westfjords of Iceland, where homo sapiens survive in the harsh, isolated environment thanks to their basic instincts. The director’s portrayal of the father/son relationship is rather uninspired and lacks dramatic tension. Through most of its runtime, the film relies solely on the atmosphere of the place and depiction of life there. There is some plot development only towards the end, when the relationship between the boy and the girl finally reaches its climax.
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The biggest weakness of Sparrows is the fact that the director had actually extended and directed a longer version of his own short movie Two Birds. Even though I was enjoying the proper Icelandic atmosphere and watching the youth of Iceland hanging out on a cliff, drinking bootleg alcohol from bottles that looked like they’d contained motor oil, it was hard to watch because I knew what was going to happen at the end. Having said that, I still give the movie a four-star review. Icelandic movies are one of a kind and this one is a model example.
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