When the Raven Flies

Being Icelandic I'm of course proud of most films made in Iceland, and they do get better every year. The only thing I sometimes criticise is that we, Icelanders, try to be TOO clever. We don't allow ourselves to just make pure action or pure comedy, but it seems we have to try to add some artistic flair to all our films. Hrafninn flygur is a viking-action film, which keeps your interest from beginning to end. The costumes and surroundings are beautiful, and the story is a good old revenge-your-parents tale, but with enough twists and side stories to keep ones interest fully. I have many friends around the globe, and Hrafninn flygur is one of the few films that I would recommend to anyone for pure entertainment value. Sadly, this film is not available any more, so we will just have to hope that one of these days they will re-release it.

My first reaction when I finished watching this movie for the first time was, "Woah, Irish ninjas versus vikings? What can be cooler than that?" Strictly, Gest isn't a ninja-- I'm being a bit facetious-- but the throwing knives, the steely resolve, and the silent lurking can make up for the cultural gap. In all respects, this is an excellent movie. The acting is great, the plot is more than a simple revenge story, and the ending is powerful. In reflection, even the unusual music fits the story well. If you can get ahold of this movie, watch it, especially if you're not Scandinavian and don't know much about Scandinavian history or culture. It was this movie that got a lot of people I know interested in learning more about that region and that era of history.

And if you're the type who likes throwing-knives, lurking, complex revenge plots, and barbarian swordplay, this is still the movie for you.

I don't know if you've ever seen a movie about vikings, but as far as i know they are few. Of those I've seen this and it's predecessor are the only "true" viking movies.

This movie has pretty bad image and sound quality which is understandable since its old. But it wins my heart for it's story, it follows a kind of norm in viking tales, basically an eye for an eye.

I am no expert in vikings or history but i have read a lot about them and many sagas (if not all) from the "Edda", anyways i liked this movie because it feels natural and real.

Some warnings though:

1. It may not be so interesting for you if you're not interested in vikings.

2. They speak Icelandic and the one i saw had Swedish subtitles only, so beware, you may not understand a word.

Powerful viking movie shot on Iceland, using a cowboy manuscript for sure! The mowie portrays the cruelty, tenderness, pride and extreme violence of that era, with great reality. Still there is that bit of the lone gunman out on the prairie,(here knife-thrower on the island Iceland) which just adds to the magnificent story of revenge. Gest (main character) comes to Iceland seeking revenge over the men who slaughtered his parents and kidnapped his sister in a viking raid in Ireland. Here he finds that his sister has married one of them.

Psychologically fast paced, as is the chain of events. Daring new use of music for this genre of movie, at times not all that successful.

The thing that shines most out of this film is the plot. The avenging son doesn't just come and kill people, he uses cunning to make them trust him and distrust each other, he separates them and then kills them when he has the upper hand.

The problem, though, is the amateurish directing and acting, something that I know well enough from my own country's productions. The fact that the language is Icelandic (and the horses, too, that's funny) doesn't help much, nor does the clearly minute budget.

In a way, I agree with many of the people that reviewed this positively: this felt like a real life Viking saga, with normal folk being dressed in animal fur and fighting with bow and knife in a dreary land. However, too much realism is bad as well, and I imagine the film would be liked only by a minority of viewers because of it. In fact, it feels like old Spaghetti westerns at times, with the bad sound and silly music added after the filming.

Now, I can imagine this done by Hollywood. They would definitely remove what was good with the script, because their heroes must always be moral and trustworthy, either white or black. The role of the woman would be relegated to something helpless, begging for assistance, rather than the courageous stance the Icelandic character takes. The fights would be epic, touching steampunk, with weird contraptions that mass murder tens of people (but without blood). When I compare this projection to the actual film, the Icelandic version wins, however I can't help think of what this could have been with just a little more resources at their disposal.