By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Hlynur Palmason
Starring: Birta Gunnarsdóttir | Friðrik Friðriksson | Hilmar Guðjónsson | Ingvar Sigurdsson | Ísar Svan Gautason
Original language title: Vanskabte land
Country: denmark, france, iceland, sweden
Year: 2023
Running time: 138
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt19623228/reference/
Brett says: “A very ambitious and breathtaking film, director Hlynur Pálmason’s third (and best) feature film to date goes for a full blown epic on the topic of colonialism, setting the film GODLAND in the 19th century during the dawn of photography. The film is inspired by a set of photographs discovered on the coast of Iceland, which the film’s epilogue considers to be the first photographic images captured of the nation. Ironically, Iceland’s photographs were the product of a Danish missionary, traversing the land others called home as if his calling to spread the faith entitled him to capture it as his own. The early days of photography motif is a brilliant contrast to the exquisite, well-advanced cinematography of Icelandic landscapes throughout the film.
“The film is a slow, methodical plod through the challenging yet gorgeous terrain of Iceland. Assigned to build a church before winter and bring prospective church members into the fold, priest Lucas must travel from the homeland of Denmark to an underdeveloped region of Iceland. The classic setbacks aligned with a tenderfoot in the wild play a major role as they are juxtaposed with the seasoned Icelandic dwellers assigned to the task of escorting the priest to his destination, begrudgingly allowing him to stop and document his progress along the way through photographs. Ultimately, a theme of unwelcomed modernism in the face of pristine nature develops out of the priest’s visit.
“The title carries a significant twofold meaning for the film, conveying first the divine, untamed landscapes that look like they came straight from the pages of Sears, Roebuck, and Heaven catalog. Secondly, however, is the negative connotation of the title that comes with entitled missionary invaders of the church who have come to claim part of this land in the name of a higher power that is being forced on the area.
“There is a Heart of Darkness-esque series of standoffs among the Icelandic guide Ragnar, the colonizer-in-question Lucas, and Icelandic resident with Danish ties Carl. Contrasts in temperament and physically are accented by the highly praiseworthy performances among the cast at large.
“Loaded with symbolic photography, a slow progressing plot that matches the grind of crossing the Icelandic countrysides, and very interesting nuances among an impressive cast of characters, GODLAND serves up a cinephile’s dream feast over the course of nearly two and half hours.
“4 fierce native Nordic Forest cats out of 5“
Chris says: “The latest from Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason is not so much an advance on 2019’s A WHITE, WHITE DAY as a deft subversion of its expectations. Following a Danish priest sent to Iceland to oversee a new parish in the late 19th Century, it was inspired by a set of actual photographs whose compositions are occasionally recreated here. Not quite a modern-day equivalent to Kubrick or Herzog but a travelogue-cum-interruption splitting the difference between the former’s rigidity and the latter’s willingness to go with the flow. 4 cats