Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Devil's Island (1996)
Director: Fridrik Thór Fridriksson
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
A decade after WWII, the Americans abandon Camp Thule, Iceland - bestowing makeshift homes on the slum dwellers of Reykjavik. Gógó departs with them, but leaves behind her three grown kids - Baddi, Danni and Dollí, who live with their grandparents, Tommi (Halldórsson) and Karolína (Jónsdóttir). At first glance, Fridriksson's charmer looks studiedly eccentric. There's something cartoonish about the motley bunch of ne'er-do-wells. They may be out of it, but they're not immune to the world, in fact they're peculiarly vulnerable to change. Baddi (a stellar performance from Kormákur) visits his mother in the States, and comes back a rock'n'roll hound dog who rules the roost with his Cadillac, hep talk and cocksure moves. It's soon obvious there's nothing for him in Iceland any more. This is a bright, tangy, highly engaging account of the old world trying to get to grips with the new. The incidental structure gives the extended cast plenty of room to make their mark, and despite the sometimes harrowing circumstances, Fridriksson always keeps the energy up.Author: TCh
Cast & crew
Director: Fridrik Thór Fridriksson
Producer: Fridrik Thór Fridriksson, Egil Ödegård, Peter Rommel
Cast: Baltasar Kormákur, Gísli Halldórsson, Sigurveig Jónsdóttir, Halldóra Geirhardsdóttir, Sveinn Geirsson, Gudmundur Olafsson full cast
Duration: 103 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Has David Cronenberg turned tame?
Has director David Cronenberg veered too far from his radical and bloody roots with new film 'A Dangerous Method'?
The 10 worst date movies
Just in time for Valentine's Day, we present ten of the least romantic films ever made
Where to watch this year's Oscar-nominated films
Find out where to watch 2012's Oscar-nominated films in London cinemas
10 unlikely badboy biopics
Featuring Phil Collins, Jeremy Clarkson, Nick Clegg, David Starkey and a host of other unlikely subjects
Interview: Sean Durkin on 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
The first-time director of the brilliant new thriller discusses religious cults and robot boxing
Pop-up cinema for Valentine's Day
Side-step romantic clichés with some alternative Valentine’s viewing






What do you think?
Post your review now