Boiled sheeps head anyone? (Jar City (DVD))

Member Name: thedevilinme

Product:	Jar City (DVD)
Date:	01/06/09 (100 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Real substance

Disadvantages: Subtitles

Whenever you watch a Scandinavian movie they are usually somewhat familiar in setting, the panoramas as bleak as the lonely and aloof central characters, the narrative somewhat gothic and foreboding, Jar City no exception. If you think of the original Insomnia, and films like Breaking the Waves and Smillas Sense of Snow, then it's that kind of vibe. The North Europeans do this stuff well and these films are always atmospheric and interesting, the title alone enough to have you scratching your chin with intrigue. Those who rented it thinking it was a Rastafarian movie set in Jamaica will be sadly disappointed. Jar City is not your mainstream movie in anyway.

Set in the enigmatic and volcanic land of Iceland, this spooky piece mixes a bit of The Whicker Man with some Straw Dogs, sprinkled with that sleepless agitation of Insomnia; Scandinavians never able to get any sleep with that 24 hour daylight. The twist with Jar City, that exploits those enigmatic Icelandic landscapes with great skill, is it tells the story in a non linear way, the start the ending, the middle anything but, although done in away you don't find confusing. The story is a complex one of inherited genetic diseases and grudges but never tries to alienate the viewer. Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson lead performance as the grumpy cop will keep you enthralled if the story isn't exciting enough.

-The Cast-

Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson ... Erlendur
Ágústa Eva Erlendsdóttir ... Eva Lind
Björn Hlynur Haraldsson ... Sigurður Óli
Ólafía Hrönn Jónsdóttir ... Elínborg
Atli Rafn Sigurðsson ... Örn
Kristbjörg Kjeld ... Katrín
Þorsteinn Gunnarsson ... Holberg
Theódór Júlíusson ... Elliði
Þórunn Magnea Magnúsdóttir ... Elín
Guðmunda Elíasdóttir ... Theodóra
Walter Grímsson ... Handrukkarar
Sveinn Olafur Gunnarsson
Magnús Ragnarsson ... Lögfræðingur
Rafnhildur Rósa Atladótir ... Kola
Jón Sigurbjörnsson ... Albert

-The Plot-

A little girl lies dying in a modern clinic in Reykjavik, the doctors unable to treat her for her genetic disorder, a tumour finally taking over her brain. We witness the tragedy because the genetic disease is the concurrent mystery and theme of the film, a link to all the deaths in the movie.

Detective Erlendur (Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson) cuts a lonely and aloof figure, divorced and constantly anguished by caring for his junkie daughter Eva (Ágústa Eva Erlendsdóttir), always running into her dealers on the job in the small town he works. The day begins for him and his detective partner; Sergeant Elinborg (Ólafía Hrönn Jónsdóttir) with a dead body, a man killed in his home by an intruder with an ashtray, a hidden black and whitr photograph of a grave yard their only clue. The brain scan of the victim reveals the same genetic illness thumbprint from the little girl from Reykjavik.

Erlendur likes to work alone and his eating habits are one of the reasons why. He loves "Svið", boiled sheep's head, an Icelandic delicacy (which he eats on screen), his other habits not much better. The man killed is Holberg (Þorsteinn Gunnarsson), someone connected to a rape that made the newspapers thirty years back, Holberg and two other men known on the island as notorious criminal trio back in the day. Another one of the three is still alive, Óli (Björn Hlynur Haraldsson), in prison but escaping on the night of the murder so number one suspect, whilst the third man is in an unknown location.

As the studious Erlendur begins to piece together the mystery more and more cases of the same genetic disease keep popping up in the investigation, maybe the key to the mystery somewhere in 'Mýrin', Jar City. The solution may lie in the identification of the woman that was raped back then, a retired corrupt cop also in the frame for having a motive, all this going on as Erlendur tries to wean his daughter off heroin, another distraction of many for the haggard cop from the island that never sleeps..

-The Conclusion-

Although nothing special, Jar City has appeal, an atmospheric crime thriller set in stunning volcanic vistas all rather appealing to the eye in its own way, Iceland that kind of place, the soundtrack as equally interesting. The highlight is Sigurðsson lead performance, his world weary cop turn very engaging, battling against Iceland's punishing weather and lunar landscapes, let alone the druggies and its small town incestuous mentality. Everyone knows each others business and so crimes are solved in that impersonal manner a coppers nouse can pick up.

With moments of dark comedy and shrewd observation there's always something going on in this movie that catches the eye. The acting is top notch and the characters three dimensional; a real European film noir appeal to it. It will only appeal to foreign film fans and if I'm honest it wasn't on my list of must sees although I'm glad I did. Quality and intelligent Scandavain films rarely make it over the North Sea so why not see one while you have the chance, the third shelf from the top on the cheap rack at blockbusters awaiting your summer viewing with a cracking five films for five pounds deal.

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Imdb.com scores it 7.1 out of 10.0 (1,135 Votes)
RuN-TiMe 93 minutes
Five films for £5 weekly deal at Blockbusters.
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Summary: Atmospheric Scandanavian film