Fortunately forfilmgoers, the Icelandic film industry is growing dissatisfied with anonymity. The industry is efficiently run and is enjoying the sort of international interest that culminated in a first-ever Academy Award nomination for 1992's Children of Nature.
The primary formula behind this success has been rooted first in the superb technical quality of the productions, and second in the nation's breathtaking scenery. Indeed, it was president Vigdis Finnbogadottir herself who once stated that Iceland "might well have been created with filmmakers in mind." The landscape is so powerful, that it forces a more symbolic rather than verbal approach to filmmaking, lest a movie suffer under the weight of too many epic propositions.
Not surprisingly, Icelandic films are starting to draw audiences around the world, in filmfestivals, and art houses cinema releases, for their integrity, their high level of craft, and their originality.
But let's take a look at some icelandic movies worth seeing, some you know others will be a pleasant surprise to watch.