Fatherland

 I made it to the Reykjavik International Film Festival in time to see their showing of "Fatherland" by Paweł Pawlikowski starring Sandra Hüller and Hanns Zischler. I had missed it when it ran in Berlin, so was very glad to have the chance to see it. It is a must-see film about Thomas Mann, although it is a fictionalized story, it very clearly asks questions about what is meant be Heimat, what does the Vaterland mean when the country itself changes? A good knowledge of Thomas Mann's family story, their emigration to the US, and the Cold War with now two German countries insisting that THEY are the home of Thomas Mann is useful for understanding the film. I've seen some terrible rants about the movie. I found it excellent (the acting is superb!) for all the questions that get raised. We spent many hours discussing these questions among people for whom there is no simple answer as to "what is the Fatherland?" If you are interested in Germany and such questions, this is a must-see film!

"The Icelandic Dream" and "Touch"

Just got back from a trip to Iceland and saw one Icelandic movie each direction. On the way to Reykjavik I saw "The Icelandic Dream".  This 2000 film sounded promising with comedian Jón Gnarr in one of the roles. It is about the midlife crisis of an Icelandic divorced dad trying to become a successful (cigarette) salesman. He is absolutely passionate about soccer and attends many matches of Valur as well as playing a rather primitive soccer game on computers. I was watching it in Icelandic with English subtitles, and noticed that sometimes something was missing in translation. I didn't find it funny at all, particularly Jón Gnarr (who ended up as the mayor of Reykjavik after running on a gag party platform, but that is another story). However, wenn I told a friend in Reykjavik about the film he broke out laughing, that was the funniest film he had seen for a long time! Apparently, you needed encyclopedic knowledge of the woes of the Valur team to get the jokes.

Much better was the film on the way back, "Touch" by Baltasar Korumákur from 2024. An old man, Kristófer, most probably a restaurant owner, decides to look up the love of his live, a Japanese women he had met and loved in London. She had suddenly disappeared with her father, who had been running a Japanese restaurant where he was working. Baltasar's son, Palmi Korumákur, plays the young Kristófer very well. It is a touching story with various surprises that I won't reveal. What a shame this film didn't make it over to Germany, it is such a good story and very well made. If you find yourself on Icelandair, do watch it!