Good movie but grossly overrated

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Even though this movie completely falls apart, it's still an interesting piece of work. There's genuine talent on both sides of the camera, but the story is such a mess that they just can't make it work.Forest Whitaker plays an insurance investigator who goes to a small town investigate a seven figure claim involving a life insurance policy. What he finds is a variety of local eccentrics, a father and son police force that is ineffectual, and an incredibly muddled storyline that goes absolutely nowhere.What's good about it: Great music, well visualized, great cast. It's character driven enough that I can see why Whitaker and Julia Stiles would sign on for it.But the story is too muddled for film. On stage or in the pages of a book these sometimes nonsensical events could possibly be accepted. Film is very unforgiving. A barn is a barn. A clinic is a clinic. We're so rooted in the real world- even though the role of Minnesota is played by Iceland- that the behavior of these people is beyond belief. The protagonist first sees the leading lady while staring through her window in the middle of the night. He has a habit of breaking into houses and clinics- possibly being a cat burglar is one of the requirements for working for an insurance company.Logic flies out the window when Stiles and Renner manipulate a huge truck to crash into their car and they and the car goes flying off a cliff into the ocean and they emerge unscathed.There's potential for a strong film out of this material. It shows the film's makers' dedication to their task by the strong cast they've assembled, including Phyllidia Law in a short but effective scene and Jeremy Renner as Stiles's brother or husband or accomplice or whatever.One thing that was dissatisfying was the fault of The Sundance Channel (I saw this on cable). It was filmed in wide-screen 2:35:1 ratio, but a full screen version was broadcast. So in a critical scene in the third act there's a moment when both characters speaking are out of camera range. That's why I prefer Independent Film Channel, because they're not afraid to letterbox.This is worth watching, but don't let the strong cast get your hopes up too much.

This was an intriguing, although not satisfying,, movie and one I still felt was worth my few bucks I paid to rent it.It was filmed in Iceland - one of the few films I've heard of with that locale - but the story in the film takes place somewhere in Midwestern America. I knew that going in, so it made it kind of strange to view, in that respect. However, the story seemed very realistic. In parts, it almost felt like a documentary, it was so real and atmospheric.However, as much as I enjoyed the movie, and particularly Forest Whitaker with his odd accent, the ending was a big disappointment. The film had so much promise up until then.Some people say this film had the feel of a Coen Brothers movie, and I agree with that. To some, this might also have been a bit slow or boring but I thought it had unique atmosphere to it. With a more satisfying ending, I would have bought the DVD and watched it several more times.

A little trip to heaven is an odd film, not good though not particularly bad. It's a film that survives on the merits of an excellent cast and in particular the performance of Forest Whitaker. He play a quiet, reserved inquisitive insurance investigator. His character Abe has so many ticks and tocks and little mannerisms that it's a pity he's never fleshed out, Abe is a good man but why does he do what he does? Why is he single if he's so sympathetic? And why does he care about Isolde? None of the questions aroused are answered. There is no mystery here. The story is okay, excluding some footage earlier on would have been awesome, for instance if you left the audience in doubt for a longer time it would have been much better. The film just never pulls you in, it keep the viewer at a distance, even with all it's foibles this could have been an amazing film if they could have simply fleshed out Whitakers character. The ending sucks too, pure suckage, inexplicable actions taken and consequences garnered...

I saw this film here in Iceland and I just loved it. It's just fantastic. Baltasar has done great things over the years and when I was a little girl he was my favorite actor. And the music was done by Mugison which is my favorite Icelandic band. The funny thing is that the Motel Isold and "Frank" were staying at in the end of the film used to be a boat shelter... and the building where the insurance company was, is a big brown building in the shape like ")" where my dad used to work. And the funniest thing is the place where the bus crash was shot. That place is one of the two main bus stations in Reykjavík and is called Hlemmur. Anyways. The film was fantastic and I recommend everybody to see it