Heartstone (film)

Heartstone
Film poster
Hjartasteinn
Directed byGuðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Written byGuðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
CinematographySturla Brandt Gøvlen[1]
Release dates
  • 1 September 2016 (2016-09-01) (Venice)
  • 28 December 2016 (2016-12-28) (Iceland)
Running time
129 minutes
CountryIceland
LanguageIcelandic

Heartstone (Hjartasteinn) is a 2016 Icelandic coming-of-age drama film directed by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson.[2] It tells the story of a strong friendship between two preteen boys in a small Icelandic fishing village and the emotional and sexual turbulence of adolescence.[3]

It was screened in the Discovery section at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.[4] On 9 September 2016, the film won the Queer Lion at the 73rd Venice Film Festival.[5] It was the first Icelandic film to be shown in a competitive section of the Venice Film Festival.[6] It was also nominated for the 2017 Nordic Council Film Prize[7] and won the 2017 Icelandic Edda Awards.[8]

Cast

  • Baldur Einarsson as Þór/ Thor
  • Blær Hinriksson as Kristján/ Christian
  • Diljá Valsdóttir as Beta/ Beth
  • Katla Njálsdóttir as Hanna/ Hannah
  • Jónína Þórdís Karlsdóttir as Rakel/ Rachel
  • Rán Ragnarsdóttir as Hafdís/ Tammy
  • Søren Malling as Sven/ Robert
  • Nína Dögg Filippusdóttir as Hulda/ Summer
  • Gunnar Jónsson as Ásgeir/ Tyler
  • Sveinn Ólafur Gunnarsson as Sigurður/ Brenda

Production

The film is Guðmundur's first feature-length film and he began working on the script in 2007.[1] It was shot in the fall of 2015 in Borgarfjörður eystri, Seyðisfjörður, Vopnafjörður, and Dyrhólaey.[9][10]

Reception

The film was well received in Iceland[1] and won the 2017 Icelandic Edda Awards.[8] The script, the dialogue, and the directing of young actors received praise.[1] The cinematography by Sturla Brandt Gøvlen amplified Icelandic nature, with long shots of coastlines and fjords.[1]

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 84% based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 6.97/10.[11] On Metacritic, which assigns rating to reviews, the film has a weighted average score of 70 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Brynja Hjálmsdóttir (30 January 2017). "Hjartasteinn". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 7 December 2019 – via Klapptré.
  2. ^ "Heartstone by Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson wins an award in the Netherlands". Icelandic Film Centre. 7 September 2016. Archived from the original on 24 September 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  3. ^ Rooney, David (31 August 2016). "Heartstone – Venice Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  4. ^ "Heartstone". Toronto International Film Festival. 7 September 2016. Archived from the original on 14 September 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
  5. ^ Boni, Federico (11 September 2016). "Venezia 2016, i film in gara per il Queer Lion – Leone LGBT della Mostra". Cineblog. Blogo. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  6. ^ "Heartstone becomes first Icelandic film to compete in Venice". Icelandic Film Centre. 14 September 2016. Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  7. ^ Pham, Annika (22 August 2017). "Five Nordic Films Nominated for Nordic Council Film Prize 2017". Nordisk Film & TV Fond. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
  8. ^ a b "Hjartasteinn sigurvegari kvöldsins". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  9. ^ "Hjartasteinn fékk þrenn verðlaun í Varsjá". Vísir.is. 18 October 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  10. ^ Ásta Hlín Magnúsdóttir (26 July 2016). "Kvikmynd tekin upp á Borgarfirði keppir um verðlaun á stórri hátíð". Austurfrétt.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  11. ^ "Heartstone (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  12. ^ "Heartstone Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
Wikiquote has quotations related to Heartstone (film).