Englar Alheimsins, often called the Icelandic One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest[citation needed], is the story of an Icelandic man, Páll (Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson), who slowly descends into madness and depression after his girlfriend leaves him. His parents decide to send him to a mental hospital, where he meets Óli (Baltasar Kormákur), who believes he's the songwriter for The Beatles, Viktor (Björn Jörundur Friðbjörnsson), who signs cheques with the signature of Adolf Hitler, and other special characters. The movie depicts his struggle, both in and out of the mental hospital.
Soundtrack
The movie soundtrack features the compositions of Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, as well as two songs of the popular band Sigur Rós: "Bíum Bíum Bambaló" and "Dánarfregnir Og Jarðarfarir". The film also includes several American rock songs, though they are not present on the soundtrack CD release.
Reception
The film opened at number one at the Icelandic box office with a gross of $57,163 in its opening weekend, the first Icelandic film to open at number one since Friðriksson's 1996 film, Devil's Island.[1]
