Virgin Mountain is a 2015 Icelandic drama film directed by Dagur Kári, starring Gunnar Jónsson and Ilmur Kristjánsdóttir. Its Icelandic title is Fúsi [fuːsɪ], the name of the lead character. The world premiere took place at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival, where the film was screened on 9 February 2015 in the Berlinale Special program. It was released in Icelandic cinemas on 20 March 2015.[2] The same year, it won the prizes for best narrative feature, actor, and screenplay at the Tribeca Film Festival,[3] and the Nordic Council Film Prize.

Virgin Mountain
Film poster
Directed byDagur Kári
Written byDagur Kári
Produced byBaltasar Kormákur
Agnes Johansen
StarringGunnar Jónsson
CinematographyRasmus Videbæk
Edited byOlivier Bugge Coutté
Andri Steinn Guðjónsson
Dagur Kári
Music bySlowblow
Production
companies
Blueeyes Productions
Nimbus Film Productions
RVK Studios
Release dates
  • 9 February 2015 (2015-02-09) (Berlinale)
  • 20 March 2015 (2015-03-20)
Running time
93 minutes
CountriesIceland
Denmark
LanguageIcelandic
Box office$749,711[1]

Plot

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An Icelandic man in his 40s lives with his mother and works as ground staff at a nearby airport. He is involved in miniature wargaming in his spare time. On his 42nd birthday Fúsi gets a break from his daily routines when he is enrolled in a dance class. He falls in love but his depressive girlfriend leaves him. He helps his ex-girlfriend to find happiness by turning a dump into a flower boutique shop. Fúsi, at the edge of falling back to his routines, decides to make changes for himself and takes a trip to Egypt and slowly smiles.

Cast

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Reception

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Stephen Dalton wrote in The Hollywood Reporter: "Gunnar Jónsson is an unlikely leading man, but extremely watchable, his physical acting and weary voice conveys both inner torment and purity of heart. Kristjánsdóttir also radiates agreeably offbeat charm as Sjöfn, even if her hangdog angel character that aches for pity would be more at home in a country and western song than in contemporary Iceland. ... A lightweight portrait of a potentially heavy subject, Kári’s fourth feature is an effortlessly likeable addition to his body of work, but too sweet and gentle to leave much of a lasting impression."[4]

References

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  1. ^ "Virgin Mountain".
  2. ^ "Virgin Mountain". Icelandic Films. Icelandic Film Centre. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
  3. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (3 April 2015). "Tribeca 2015: Offbeat romance 'Virgin Mountain' lands top prizes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
  4. ^ Dalton, Stephen (9 February 2015). "Virgin Mountain: Berlin Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
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