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Sick Product of a Sick System

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Viewing life through the lens of an uninspired, socially defective, 30 year old man doesn't seem particularly uplifting. Geek Hylnur, the protagonists of the film '101 Reykjavik', doesn't want much out of life. He is content living at home with his mother, spending time at the local bar and surviving purely on the social benefits the state provides. However, the story of Hlynur transpires to be one full of fantasy, humor and lust. And in the end, it gives the audience the hope that maybe meaning can be found after all. '101' Reykjavik', directed by Baltasar Kormakur, is set in Reykjavik, Iceland. The location sets the mood for the entire film, and can be seen as a representation of Hlynur. Hlynur is somewhat of an "anti-hero" - an immature, childish and socially isolated man who does not want more out of life than he currently enjoys. He spends his days half-heartedly searching for employment, without any real conviction behind his actions. He is blissfully unaware of any greater pleasure that can be found in life. How quickly life can change. A night of passion, an unexpected love affair and an unusual family dynamic all emerge, shocking Hlynur out of his lull and into a world full of confusion and complications.Kormakur's characterization of Hlynur is the driving force behind the film's success. Hlynur isn't an active participant in life - life mostly just happens to him. His life borders on the brink of tragedy, meaningless and hilarity. It's an uncomfortable balance that leaves the audience desperately entertained. Voice overs are utilized to convey the isolation of Hlynur and how desperate his struggle is to connect to the world his lives in. The coming of age of Hylnur is a huge theme throughout the film. Hlynur begins rid himself of his past life, and a chance to turn away from the dark and gloomy tones that had pervaded his life. The stunning Icelandic landscape around him suggests that there is in fact beauty and hope to be found in the world. Kormakur directs the film brilliantly. The setting of Reykjavik is used as a metaphor for for Hylnur. It is snowy, desolate and unwelcoming - a perfect representation of Hylnur and his love life. The establishing shots throughout the film of the magnificent landscapes of Iceland and it's bustling nightlife do a marvelous job of making the audience feel like they are actually at the location of the story. Dry, unexpected humor is strewn throughout the film in a masterful way. This is displayed perfectly in an interaction between Lola, a local Spanish flamenco instructor, and Hlynur Lola: "So, what do you do?" Hlynur: "Nothing. Lola: "What kind of nothing?" Hlynur: "The nothing kind of nothing."Kormakur uses humor to engage the audience, while at the same time revealing the depths of Hlynur's meaningless and loneliness extend to. I particularly enjoyed the performance of the actor who portrayed Hlynur - Hilmir Snaer Gudnason. Through him, we can get a sense of Hlymur's emptiness and longing for meaning throughout the film. I found myself feeling sympathetic towards him, despite many of his unendearing character traits. Gudnason, and all the other actors in the film, deliver their dialogue in a believable and engaging way, pushing the film along with their wonderful performances.'101 Reykjavik' is a wonderful reflection of the changes occurring in Iceland, in particular the progressive social values that the film depicts. I enjoyed the film thoroughly. I felt as though the plot progressed a little slowly at times, but the performances of the lead actors drove the film through these dull periods. Despite the fact that the plot is completely bizarre, I found myself relating to the plight of Hlynur and hoping that he could overcome the trap in which he had found himself. UItimately, the film conveys a timely message of hope. I would definitely recommend this film. If you are able to overcome the complete absurdity of the storyline, you will find yourself engaged with the characters, while at the same time enjoying the breathtaking scenery that is on offer throughout the film. Kormakur proves himself to be a fantastic director, and the dialogue between the characters is dry, witty and unpredictable. '101 Reykjavik" is constantly entertaining and well worth watching.

***WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS***101 Reykjavik takes place in the heart of Iceland's capital, Reykjavik. Hlynur, a 30 year old "mama's boy", is happily jobless, living at home, filling his days with porn and his evenings at the pub. After years of idleness, Hlynur suddenly faces a promising relationship, threats from the unemployment agency, his absent, alcoholic father, his mom coming out of the closet and learns he is the father of his mother's girlfriend's child (opps). Life is coming at Hlynur hard and he is turning and running away as fast as he can. Director Baltasoar Kormakir uses the blustery Icelandic winters to portray Hlynur's life coming at him hard and fast. Often, we see Hlynur walking through the streets of Reykjavik with the snow and ice blasting him in the face, coating his glasses and beard. His only escapes are home with his mother and the pub. Even during Hlynur's darkest moment we see the ice and the snow consuming him; his suicide attempt was to let the snow and ice bury him. However, Hlynur comes to realize that even when life is coming at with all its fury, the best you can do is stand up, brush yourself off and push forward. One of the storms Hlynur needs to get through is coming to terms with his mother's announcement that she and Lola are lovers. For most people, especially American viewers, hearing your mother come out of the closet as a lesbian can be quite a shock. For Hlynur, however, it is really no big deal. He tells her that its "great" and assures her he has no problem with her sexual orientation. What I think this represents is the general notion that people who identify as GLBT are typically accepted. Indeed, Nordic and Scandinavian countries are well known for their progressive public policies regarding those who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual. In Iceland, at the time of 101 Reykjavik's release (2000), same sex sexual activity had long been decriminalized, there was equal age of consent and anti-discrimination laws protecting housing, employment and civil rights (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Iceland). While it is heartwarming to see Hlynur accept his mother and her lover, we still get a glimpse of anti-gay attitudes. Hlynur's drinking buddies and friends at the pub tease him and make fun of his mother for being lesbian. This is a good reminder that although governments can be accepting and accommodating for GLBT people, the public's attitude may not be as friendly. While Hlynur accepts his mother for who she is and clearly loves her, his feelings towards the rest of his family are less than amiable. To Hlynur, his extended family is another extension of the rut his life is stuck in. Dreading the Christmas Day dinner, Hlynur explains to his mother he cannot stand going to his sister's house because it is out in the middle of nowhere. What Hlynur labels as "nowhere" is really not far from the city and is still considered a suburb; hardly the middle of nowhere. However, without the nightlife and bar scene of Reykjavik, the suburb seems lifeless. The Christmas dinner is a painful experience for not only Hlynur, but everyone else as well. The dinner table is crowded and cramped and no one has anything to say. After a few awkward and failed attempts at conversation ("so how is everyone?"), the family falls back to the safety of the weather. After dinner, we continue to see the conversation struggling as the men talk about the new sofa. Trying to save the evening, Hlynur's sister puts on the home video of Christmas dinner from the previous year. There they sit and watch and the very same people talk about the weather and new items. It seems like every aspect of Hlynur's life is in repeat. In this scene, we see a rather disturbing and humorous daydream of Hlynur shooting his extended family; symbolizing that he is coming to a breaking point and he needs to take some control of his life. Hlynur's experiences at Christmas dinner are a good reminder that although family is important, they can be one of the factors that keep people stuck in ruts. Once Hlynur is able to come to terms with all the different aspects of his life and find a way for them to live in harmony with each other, he starts to realize there is more to life than living off unemployment and porn. He takes great care of his brother/son, finally gets a job, and is able to live with his mother and Lola. Most people do not live in cold, isolated areas like Reykjavik but from time to time, people do find themselves stuck in life's ruts like Hlynur. The small, isolated island of Iceland was a good backdrop to the feelings and experiences Hlynur was facing. The strong elements were beating Hlynur in the face and yet he was able to move on. Reykjavik 101 is a hopeful film that shows audiences that even when life seems dead and desperate, we can always brush ourselves off and move forward. In all, 101 Reykjavik is a heartwarming and refreshing film about pulling yourself up and bringing your life back together. I would definitely recommend it for mature audiences who can handle sexually explicit scenes and themes.

Iceland isn't exactly known for it's thriving cinema industry and while I hardly consider myself an expert on the films of obscure European countries; I'm not sure that Iceland have had even one major success in film-making. They do, however, have this film; 101 Reykjavik, and it's actually quite good. The first thing you will notice about the film is it's downtrodden, gritty European style; which has already been implemented in a number of smaller European country's films, most notably those of Sweden's Lukas Moodysson, to great effect. As the film predominantly aims for realism, the gritty style bodes well as the story isn't exactly a happy one. It's more weird than anything else, and it follows an under-achieving waste of space called Hlynur. Hlynur is thirty years of age and still lives with his mother, and her friend Lola, who moved in with the two. After a drunken new years eve fling; Lola finds herself pregnant with Hlynur's child, and things get worse still for our protagonist when it turns out that Lola is something more to his mother than just a 'friend'...The character 'Lola' seems to have been christened that way so that the filmmakers could implement a techo-ish rendition of the hit Kinks song 'Lola' into the plot…ah, whatever. The film delights in it's obscure plot line, and most of the humour derives from that. The movie is actually very funny, and many sequences and dialogue exchanges in the film had me in stitches. The human relationship angle of the plot is the main focus of the movie, and the way that the film analyses what happens to it's characters as they are forced into this unusual situation is actually very good. The realistic acting gives the film more credibility for it's plot, and the gritty style gives it almost documentary feel, which puts the audience in the position of the voyeur; which in turn makes the film feel more like a cross section into Icelandic life. Of course, I'm sure that not every house in Iceland is like the one put forward in this movie... Anyway, the film constantly intrigues with it's plot and characters, and although the ending feels somewhat out of place; the rest of the film is good and although this isn't a masterpiece or a must see; it's not bad, and definitely worth watching.

I was extremely impressed with this movie as I'm pretty sure it's the first film I've ever watched that originated in Iceland. It's very obvious that they don't mess around over there! Both in making motion pictures and their everyday lifestyles. American slackers can't hold a candle to the main character here. He had the system going for him in each way he could. All he did was surf the Internet and watch porn (sometimes even weird stuff like the animal kind or even as simple as women exercising), and would either drink, do drugs, or have sex at night. The girls in this were pretty cute; they weren't hot compared to Hollywood standards but they're all natural and that's a thing we rarely see here anymore. The European people seem more laid back when it comes to their forms of entertainment and don't get all worked up if a little adult content slips into their art which is a good thing. The parents over here are such hypocrites it's disgusting. They'll go all crazy if they see the slightest displeasing thing on the screen but then when it comes to their real lives they do some highly immoral deeds themselves. But that's just the way it goes. I did like how the main character in this is both funny but also steps back and analyzed life at times too which proves he's deeper than you'd think at first look.Final Chill:Movies: Not much would be added to the viewing this way.DVD Purchase: Yes, but it'll take awhile to track it down for a decent price.Rental: If you're looking for something a little off the beaten path then you'll love it!