The Seer and the Unseen

Saw this film at SFIFF 2019 and it has stuck with me since. A truly unusual premise, the film uses a poignant and allegorical approach to exploring often alarmist or cliched environmental stories and a clever twist regarding the marketplace that devastated Iceland last decade. But the best part is the memorable and compelling subject: Raga, a grandmother who see and speaks with Icelands elves. Whether you believe in what she believes or not, is kind of besides the point. She's charming, grounded and wise and her story stands not just for the Icelandic environmental context, but for wider, more universal struggles. And my god, is Iceland gorgeous! I think this is a must-see for those in search of magic :)

Variety reviews THE SEER & THE UNSEEN as: "Serving also as a layered snapshot of a nation in multiple forms of limbo - economical, ecological, even spiritual - in the wake of 2008's near-ruinous banking crisis, this deft, inquisitive film ought to beguile audiences and buyers alike as it travels the festival circuit."

I couldn't agree more. A surprising, delightful approach that felt more like a fiction film or fable that a straightforward documentary. A favourite of MIFF2019.

I viewed The Seer and the Unseen at the SF Film Festival and it was truly a wonder. This documentary is more than one woman's moral crusade against the powers of government and industry to protect the ancient volcanic rock formations in Iceland. It is more than the natural lava fields which become subject to corporate and municipal encroachment as the New Viking economic expansion swells. The movie follows Ragnhildur "Ragga" Jónsdóttir and her work as an environmental activist as seer to the local elves, trolls, and other hidden people whose homes and sacred spaces are threatened in the harbor town of Hafnarfjörður. It is a meditation on the conflict between capitalism and traditional belief, two unseen forces that structure our visible worlds and transform our physical environments.

Dosa depicts an exquisite portrait of Ragga who is a quiet revelation in her home and on her battlefield, the natural lava fields she seeks to protect. The soundtrack is minimalist but luxuriant, played by Nature itself - winds whistling, grasses and leaves crackling thru the icy, dead winter and blooming spring - moving in time, across all of time. We are gently transported, taken up and and caught in the flow, traveling with all species alike through this ancient space. This is aesthetic immersion, and through it, we meet Ragga and a faith which has given her sight into this other world. But as much as she can explain what she see and eloquently translate their messages to us, she cannot give us her sight. So Dosa acts as proxy and midwife, making Ragga's inner world comes alive for our senses. She populates our perceptual fields so fully that essentially we get all but the elves. Unseen, they are not un-sensed thanks to the beauty and moving power of the documentary.