''Falcons'' (Icelandic: ''Fálkar'' ()), is the seventh film directed by

Friðrik Þór Friðriksson Friðrik Þór Friðriksson (born 12 May 1954; pronounced ), sometimes credited as Fridrik Thor Fridriksson, is an Icelandic film director and producer. Biography Fridriksson started his film making career with experimental films and documentar ...

. This film, released in 2002, is mostly in

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

Plot

It is the story of an ex-convict, Simon (

Keith Carradine Keith Ian Carradine ( ; born August 8, 1949) is an American actor who has had success on stage, film, and television. He is known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's film ''Nashville'', Wild Bill Hickok in the HBO series '' Deadwood ...

), who after returning to Iceland where his mother was born, to visit relatives, looks for the loneliest place in the world to commit suicide. In a small village he meets Dúa (

Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir (born 10 March 1966) is an Icelandic actress from Reykjavík. Early life and education Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir ( born 10. Mars 1966) is an Icelandic actress, director, and producer. Mrs. Vilhjalmsdóttir is a well ...

), an Icelandic young lady, who is found to be an interesting, rather strange woman by Simon. Dúa has a caged

falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene. Adult falcons ...

that she hopes to tame, but they get into trouble as it is illegal to possess this kind of animal in captivity. In the story, Simon is the embodiment of a jailed bird, one of the falcons and as she is an

air sign In Western astrology, astrological signs are the twelve 30-degree sectors that make up Earth's 360-degree orbit around the Sun. The signs enumerate from the first day of spring, known as the First Point of Aries, which is the vernal equinox. ...

, they join in a relationship ruled by Simon's belief that she is his illegitimate daughter. Surrounded by tension between them, Simon serves as a protective figure to Dúa, who keeps him from committing suicide. The couple escape to

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, to start all over again. The protagonists' behaviours are opposite to each other: Simon is down to earth and finds himself awkward by Dúa's eccentric beliefs in

astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of Celestial o ...

, who considers Simon as a typical Scorpio and thus avoids deepening into a more serious relationship, partly because of the feeling of his paternity. Dúa's falcon, that she nourished and protected when her uncle found it with a broken wing, has a high value to her, as she considers it last remnant of the beloved life in Iceland. The falcon travels with them on their escape and has a high monetary value. Later, as Dúa wasted their money, Simon tries to sell the falcon in order to cover their expenditure, but he is cheated by some crooked

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

and the falcon is stolen.

Cast

: Simon *

: Dúa * Ingvar E. Sigurðsson: Jóhann * Magnús Ólafsson: Lobbi * Margrét Ólafsdóttir: Auntie *

Friðrik Friðriksson Friðrik Þór Friðriksson (born 6 October 1964) is an Icelandic former international football goalkeeper. He played club football for Fram Reykjavik, Breiðablik, Fram again, B1909 (Denmark), Þór Akureyri and ÍBV. Friðrik won 26 caps ...

: Young Policeman *

Axel Prahl Axel Prahl (born 26 March 1960 in Eutin) is a German actor and musician. Prahl, born in Eutin, grew up in nearby Neustadt in Holstein. After his A-levels, Prahl started studying music and mathematics, but then went on to acting school in Kiel. ...

: Car Rental Dealer *

Marisa Calcagno Marisa may refer to: * Marisa (town), an Indonesian town * Marisa, Hellenised name of Maresha, town in Idumea (today in Israel) * Marisa (given name), a feminine personal name * ''Marisa'' (gastropod), a genus of apple snails * MV ''Marisa'' (193 ...

: Sabine * Margrét Helga Jóhannsdóttir: Barmaid *

Ramin Yazdani Ramin or Rameen, transliterated from Rāmin (Persian: رامین), is a Persian masculine given name of Zoroastrian origin. It is also an occasional surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Ramin Bahrani, Iranian-American wri ...

: Scarface *

Geo von Krogh Geo- is a prefix derived from the Greek word ''γη'' or ''γαια'', meaning "earth", usually in the sense of "ground or land”. GEO or Geo may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''GEO'' (magazine), a popular scientific magazine ...

: Salvation Army Host *

Hark Bohm Hark Bohm (; born 18 May 1939) is a German actor, screenwriter, film director, playwright and former professor for cinema studies. He was born in Hamburg-Othmarschen and grew up on the island Amrum. His younger brother was the actor Marquard Boh ...

: A Man of the World * Ragnheidur Steindórsdóttir: Nurse *

Guðmundur Ólafsson Guðmundur or Gudmundur is an Icelandic male first name, sometimes shortened to Gummi or Gvendur. The Icelandic surname Guðmundsson is a patronymic surname meaning ''son of Guðmundur''. Guðmundsdóttir is a patronymic surname meaning ''daught ...

: Doctor * Pétur Ólafsson: Uncle Tóti *

Theódór Júlíusson Theódór Júlíusson (born 21 August 1949) is an Icelandic actor. He has appeared in more than twenty films since 1994. Theódór won the 2012 Edda Award for Best Leading Actor for his performance as Hannes in ''Volcano A volcano is a ruptur ...

: Bus Driver * Randver Thorláksson: Customs Officer * Zack-Volker Michalowski: Antique Dealer * Jóhanna Vigdís Hjaltadóttir: TV Reporter I * Ómar Ragnarsson: TV Reporter II * Örlygur Kristfinnsson: Gallery Owner * Darren Forman: American I * Glenn Robert Hodge: American II * Rafi Guessous: Doorman * Bernd Gajkowski: Lübeck Bartender * Frank Wieczorek: Sad Looking Man * Werner Karle Jung: Shady Looking Man

Music

The soundtrack was released as a separate CD titled '' Fálkar''. The music composition was mainly by

Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson (; born 23 April 1958), also known as HÖH, is a musician, an art director, and '' allsherjargoði'' (''chief goði'') of Ásatrúarfélagið ("the Ásatrú Association"). Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson was a pioneer in the use ...

and several important artists who set up a proper atmosphere to the film's plot.

References

External links

''Falcons'' at the Icelandic Film Corporation web site
* * {{Friðrik Þór Friðriksson 2002 films English-language Icelandic films 2000s Icelandic-language films Films directed by Friðrik Þór Friðriksson Films scored by Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson Films set in Hamburg 2000s English-language films Films about astrology 2002 multilingual films Icelandic multilingual films