Stockholm Film Festival

A GRANDIOSE EPIC ABOUT LOVE, HONOR and betrayal set in the Norse medieval viking culture. Askur is a young man of good birth who marries Embla in Norway during the 10th century. She is the daughter of one of the few remaining viking leaders. The king in the country is a brutal tyrant in the middle of converting the heathens to Christianity. He forces Askur to go to Iceland to convert the people there. In order to save his and Embla's lives Askur resistingly accepts the mission. The king, who has fallen in love with Embla, locks her into a cloister, as a kind of hostage and is hoping Askur won't return. Askur is equipped with a missionary uniform and gets a sword shaped as a crucifix in order to show the Icelanders the power of the white viking - Christ. Askur realizes that the mission is hopeless but cannot forget Embla.
Comment:
ABOUT 1000 YEARS A.C. THE Norwegian king had managed to convert nearly the whole country to Christianity. The Icelandic population remained heathen and the fact that most of them were nothing but political refugees from Norway making the foundation of Iceland by escaping the tyranny of the king, didn't make the issue much easier. They created their own government, Europe's first parlament, and appeared to be able to avoid the many battles that were fought in Europe at the time. But the Norwegian king intended to make Iceland Christian, even if he was going to have to use violence. A centralized religion with its seat in Norway of course strengthened his power.
When the king sends Askur to Iceland the population there already knows about his mission. The Icelandic peasants suddenly disappear and pretend they're not home. They leave their women to receive Askur, who then has nobody to duel with. The Icelanders use their cleverness and practical jokes to such an extent that Askur's journey through the country starts to look like the one Don Quixote made.
The tide of the film comes from an early misunderstanding of some of the vikings, who believed that Jesus was some kind of white dressed viking fighting against the powers of the heathen darkness. His crucifix was often considered to be literally a weapon, something like the mix of a hatchet and a sword!
I have picked very young actors to play Askur and Embla. They have something most twenty-year-olds have lost. A twinkle in the eye, a slightly satanic aura. They're convinced that everything is possible. That's what The White Viking is about.''
HRAFN GUNNLAUGSSON

Medverkande

Egill πlafsson, Tomas Norström

Producent

Dag Alveberg

Manus

Hrafn Gunnlaugsson, Jonathan Rumbold

Foto

Tony Forsberg

Musik

Hans-Erik Philip

Talat språk

Icelandic

 

Andra filmer från sektionen Midnight Releases

Se alla festivalfilmer från 1991