Vanskabte Land - Volaða Land

A dark tale of perturbing beauty, GODLAND by Icelandic writer-director Hlynur Pálmason plunges us into the epic story of Lucas, a young Danish man of faith sent to Iceland at the end of the 19th century to build a chapel in a wild, uncharted area. A sincere, inquisitive idealist without any prejudice at first, keen to photograph places and people around him, Lucas – strikingly played by Elliott Crosset Hove – gradually loses his grip. Ignoring the laws of nature’s immense force, his arrogance prevents him from trusting his native guides, with devastating consequences. Arising from a reflection on the island’s colonial past, Pálmason’s vision of Luca’s missionary expedition spirals, with the protagonist’s mind faltering as his heart is conquered by dark, unpredictable forces.
Austere, visually stunning and emotionally troubling, GODLAND was inspired by seven historic photographs taken by a Danish priest, the first to document Iceland’s southeastern coast. Evoking this historical source, the film is shot in the boxy 1.33:1 Academy ratio, reproducing the rounded corners of old pictures. Rigorous framing, an unsettling soundscape and a remarkable sense of pacing create a unique sensory experience, as nature’s magnitude is pitted against the fragility of the human soul. (Maria Giovanna Vagenas)

Hlynur Pálmason: A DAY OR TWO (2012, K), SEVEN BOATS (2014, K), WINTER BROTHERS (2017, TV), WEISSER, WEISSER TAG (2019), NEST (2022, K)