To celebrate the 110th anniversary of Halldór Laxness’ birth, Gljúfrasteinn, the writer’s home and museum, together with Bíó Paradís and RÚV, are holding a special retrospective of films based on some of the most well-known works by the Icelandic author. The event is being hosted from April 23 to 28 at Bíó Paradís and it features eight titles in total, spanning from the 50’s to the late 90’s.
The eight films are the following:
- Salka Valka (1954) by Arne Mattsson
- Brekkukotsannáll (Annals of Brekkukot, also known as The Fish Can Sing 1973) by Rolf Hädrich
- Silfurtunglið (Silver Moon, 1978) by Hrafn Gunnlaugsson
- Lilja (1978) by Hrafn Gunnlaugsson, Snorri Þórisson
- Paradísarheimt (Paradise Reclaimed, 1980) by Rolf Hädrich, Sveinn Einarsson
- Atómstöðin (The Atom Station, 1984) by Þorsteinn Jónsson
- Kristnihald undir jökli (Christianity at the Glacier, 1989) by Guðný Halldórsdóttir
- Ungfrúin góða og húsið (The Honor of the House, 1999) by Guðný Halldórsdóttir
Out of the eight features, three titles (Paradísarheimt, Brekkukotsannáll and Silfurtunglið) are TV productions; Lilja is the only short film. The full program for the event, complete with time for each screening, is available on Bíó Paradís‘ official website.
Halldór Kiljan Laxness, born on April 23 in 1902, was a very prolific writer and one of the most widely recognized Icelandic artists ever. Although he is especially popular among the public for his novels and short stories, Halldór Laxness also penned a number of poems, plays and articles in the course of his long career. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1955.
Can’t understand a word of Icelandic: too bad. I would have loved to catch one of these while i’m in Reykjavik.