Svartur á leik

Black's Game is worth watching because there are a couple of twists without which it would be just another crime thriller.

Apart from a few landmarks you won't see much of Iceland in the movie. This makes the setting more universal. And since there's a high probability you'll watch it dubbed in another language it might appear to be happening in any Scandinavian country.

The classic story of a main protagonist meeting an old friend who leads him to life of crime is more plausible if you remember that they're both in a small community on a remote island with limited competition. Therefore the ascent to the top is swift but it would be a surprise if the authorities won't react accordingly fast...

I saw this film as part of the Rotterdam Film Festival 2012. Main features are the high quality acting and script. The story has an unmistakable drive, keeping your attention for the whole duration. What we see unroll is a typical growth path for a young criminal. He starts with something relatively innocent, moves on to something less benign, and just has to continue from then on while becoming more and more unable to leave the "circle".

As a bonus we get a nice hint from the mentor-in-crime of our main character. When something unexpected happens, do the first thing that comes to mind, however strange it may be, and do it without any hesitation. He indeed acts on that rule a few times with success, especially in the final scene. How that last scene ends exactly, is deliberately left open by the film makers. I don't consider that to be a real problem, this being the only logical wrap-up for the story.

The final Q&A revealed that the footage was shot last May, but that the editing only finished the Monday before the festival screening. Having a fixed deadline in the form of this festival, was definitely needed to arrive at the finished product we saw.

After spending a night in the cells for a violent encounter, a young guy called Stebbi (Thor Kristjansson) bumps into an old school friend Tóti (Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson). The latter is now a gangster and he invites Stebbi into his world. Things become more complicated, however, when they join forces with a psychotic gangster called Bruno (Damon Younger). They take over the territory of the old-guard and set up a complex drug trafficking system but things begin to spiral out of control.

Pusher and Drive director Nicolas Winding Refn is the executive producer here. Black's Game is a film that does show his influence. It's a stylish crime-thriller with a prominent electronica soundtrack. It's based on a best-selling novel and it includes re-enactments of some real events. Set in the last days of the 20th century, its historical setting is intended to reflect the growth of the Icelandic crime underworld at the turn of the millennium. In many ways it's a fairly routine crime film, what really makes it distinctive is its Icelandic flavour. The dramatic landscape and the cultural details set this gangster flick apart from others. Otherwise it uses lots of stylistic touches now familiar to the genre like split-screen, slow motion and jump-cuts, although these are always quite welcome and they are well done here. As you might also expect for the genre, it is violent and disturbing at times too. But it also has space for a little sensuality as well, with the gorgeous María Birta, who plays coke-head Dagný, a very welcome presence indeed.

Black's Game may not exactly break the mould but it's a very good crime-thriller nevertheless. If you enjoy the new wave of north European crime films, such as the recent Headhunters, then this one should offer you something too. It wraps the genre up in the unique ambiance that northern European films do.

In spite of its smallness and remoteness, Iceland has lively and notable film industry, with several remakes made in Hollywood and world-famous actors included. This century has seen the development of thrillers, often based on real events - in the line of other Nordic countries. Svartur á leik is a fine example of them: realistic plot and characters, twists in the scenario, witty ending... Well, unlike in Hollywood films, there are no constant chases, shootings and explosions, characters are not dealing with thoughtful sayings and not escaping in the very final moment... Nevertheless, there is a kind of Nordic style, splendidly complemented by nature scenes and club milieu. The actors and scene feed may seem a bit torpid, but so the Nordic people are...

Recommended to all those fond of Nordic crime films, and not thinking of Iceland as an idyllic and static country - international crime and addictions have reached this distant and thinly populated island as well...

The drug dealing underworld is the focus here, set in Iceland, with a group of very unseemly individuals, fueled by cocaine and large quantities of alcohol and loud music in one too many night club scenes. We get bad cops and criminals and mediocre acting with an apparently bad English dub in the version I watched. A guy nicknamed Psycho is lured into the drug trade by the big money to be made and he hooks up with a childhood friend in many law breaking activities, including a funny bank robbery. Along the way there is a homosexual rape, and some bloody violence. The pace is rapid, but by the time it finally ended, I really did not care what happened to anyone involved, because no one portrayed had any redeeming qualities. A very average entry into the crime genre.