I saw this film at the 2003 Toronto International Film Festival.
Nói is an oddity in a land of oddities. He's bright, but never in school, and his tiny remote town is boring him to death. All his attempts to escape seem to fail, and then a cruel twist of fate leaves him even more isolated than before.
Clearly a bit autobiographical, this first feature contained some clever '80s kitsch (Rubik's Cube, MasterMind, ViewMaster) from the director's own teen years. Though not particularly original, the film was well-made and filled with dark humour and some wonderful images (and not just of the "beautiful Iceland" variety, though it had those, too.) Nói shooting at huge icicles with a shotgun, and later, digging a grave in a snowstorm, were particularly arresting. I'd like to see what Dagur Kári will do next.
(7.5/10)
Nói is an oddity in a land of oddities. He's bright, but never in school, and his tiny remote town is boring him to death. All his attempts to escape seem to fail, and then a cruel twist of fate leaves him even more isolated than before.
Clearly a bit autobiographical, this first feature contained some clever '80s kitsch (Rubik's Cube, MasterMind, ViewMaster) from the director's own teen years. Though not particularly original, the film was well-made and filled with dark humour and some wonderful images (and not just of the "beautiful Iceland" variety, though it had those, too.) Nói shooting at huge icicles with a shotgun, and later, digging a grave in a snowstorm, were particularly arresting. I'd like to see what Dagur Kári will do next.
(7.5/10)