Jar City - 2006

New Zealand International Film Festival
Jar City (2006) - Iceland

The one line review is: Icelandic police procedural, based on the award winning novel, the anti-CSI.

I have to admit, I have no idea why I chose this movie out of the festival guide, but I am glad I did. It has a lot to offer and is quite the antidote to all the CSI ilk crime programs on TV.

There is an extreme lack of beautiful people, glamorous locations and sexed up pseudo science presented as factual forensics. Right from the opening discovery of the murder scene, the police bypass the most obvious piece of forensic evidence on the front door that on a TV show would blow the case wide open. Instead we get dour cops complaining about another messy and meaningless murder. From here good old fashioned interviewing and investigation leads them down a the road to the Icelandic heartland. There is also a strong forensics theme that runs counter to the main story in what starts as a sub plot, bringing the relatively low tech police work into a stronger contrast.

A lazy reviewer at this point would make a comparison between the landscapes on show and the tone of the movie. Stark, barren, beautiful yet remote, lonely and icy, small weather beaten fishing villages hiding long festering grievances behind a polite veil of keeping up appearances. And I am indeed lazy enough to use all those words because they are all appropriate. It is also worth pointing out the small population of Iceland leading to quite realisticly to all the cops, crims and their families being on first name basis.

And it is not all dour and downbeat. There is a very strong humorous streak running right through. Comedy highlights include a cop vs crim foot chase that goes against just about every other chase in cinema history. Also lots (and lots) of meat including one takeaway meal that grossed the audience out more than the autopsy scene. They also achieve the near impossible comic feat of making funny rape jokes. It is a subject that really has no business being funny, but they find a way to frame it that takes the sting out of an emotive issue, and even had the grey haired women in sitting in my section tittering away.

Overall, highly recommend in a 'I have overdosed on CSI' kind of way.


As an aside. This is the first movie I have seen at the mighty Civic in many years. I think the last thing I saw there was a That's Incredible screening of Bad Santa, complete with Ant Timpson simulating an illegal sex act on someone in a school uniform. It has to be said the Civic is a stunning venue. In my travels I have stuck my nose in cinemas the world over, and nothing came close for ambience. The only thing I found that could best it was the Coliseum in London's West End, used by the English National Opera and Royal Variety Performances. That being said, by golly my Civic seat was uncomfortable and narrow. My posterior has obviously been spoiled by far too much time in cineplex wide arse seating.