Bye Bye Blue Bird

While watching this film I found my attention slipping from time to time. At other moments I was thoroughly enjoying myself. So my reaction to this film is mixed.

Two eccentric young women, Rannvá and Barba, come to their native Faroer to find some connection with their past and their families. In the beginning of the film it seems, because of the women's erratic and provocative behaviour, that their only objective is to show the local inhabitants how extremely boorish and unsophisticated they (the locals) are. But through a series of seemingly unrelated events and persons we learn more about the history of both characters and the seriousness of their quest for belonging.

Accompanied by their faithful driver Rúni, who himself is on a quest for work in an interesting but never fully realized sub-plot, they drive through the beautiful Faroer landscape. Their moods swing from the deeply tragic to the highly exhilarated.

It is in these exhilarated moments that the girls really come to life and for me these were the scenes that I found most enjoyable. A feeling of genuine fun is transmitted through the TV-screen (I missed this one in the cinema) and this made me really like these women.

The tragic scenes seemed to me a little over the top and did not feel very genuine, too much like two actresses desperately trying to convey an emotion they do not feel at that moment. It was in these moments that my attention wandered from the screen and it is here that I think this movie is mostly unconvincing.

All in all still a very enjoyable, nicely paced film with good camera work and editing, conveying a slight sense of disorientation which helps in evoking the spirit the women are in.

A roadmovie about two young girls, who travels around Island in search of.. something.

This is boring, boring, boring. What the director often tries to achieve in the visual art they often loose in the speed. And that`s the case here. Nothing happens, and things must happen in a road movie. It feels like being stuck in a chewing gum.

Wanna see a road movie? See "Thelma & Louise" Wanna see a good Islandic movie? See "Hrafninn flýgur" (or "When the raven flies")

Maybe another example, where an ambitious newcomer director hides the lack of a true story behind a road movie. This time with two weird young ladies returning to their Iceland home country.

The movie isn't really bad, it is quite entertaining, sometimes a little bit funny, some scenes really 'breath life' - but only sometimes the two main characters seem really 'alive' (not a mere construction played by wanna-be actresses).

If you want to enjoy the wonderful Icelandic countryside, I rather recommend 'Cold Fever' (also a road movie, but a really beautiful one).

The plot is arguably thin, but I loved the film's unique setting. A film about escape, island identity and personal revelation. Faroe comedy and tragedy marks this obscure and older indie film worth a watch especially if you are wanting to take in different scenery and culture alike!

Although enjoyable and sometimes hilarious, this movie is poorly founded on a string of unbelievable characters and slow plot development while the emotional baggage seems to be referenced but not visualized. It obviously isn't a mainstream film, but even for art-house it is trying to be too mainstream-focused and it underestimates its audience in doing this. The movie is perfect for a dark Sunday afternoon, but don't expect it to get you in a more positive mood, for this, the film is treating its material (even the comedy) to heavily. Maybe the movie is best reviewed in comparison to its two protagonists, Rannva and Barba; both coated in glamour and good looks, but ultimately shallow, empty and pretentious.