Rift (c) Breaking Glass Pictures

Queer Thriller Alert: Rift

 

An enticing, well-acted and expertly-directed mystery-thriller, the new Icelandic film Rift will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Paying homage to classic horror films like Robert Wise’s The Haunting and Nicolas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now, writer/director Erlingur Thoroddsen has created something genuinely suspenseful. The movie has proven a big hit on the film festival circuit – not just LGBT film festivals, but general horror film festivals as well, where it has earned rave reviews.

 

Gunnar receives a strange phone call from his ex-boyfriend, Einar, months after they parted ways. Einar sounds distraught, like he’s about to do something terrible to himself, so Gunnar drives to the secluded cabin where Einar is holed up and soon discovers there is more going on than he imagined. As the two come to terms with their broken relationship, some other person seems to be lurking outside the cabin, wanting to get in.

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Heartstone (c) Breaking Glass Pictures

A Conversation with Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson, the Director of Heartstone

Enjoy this interview with writer/director Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson, the man behind the gorgeous and powerful new coming-of-age drama Heartstone from Breaking Glass Pictures. This conversation was taken from the official press kit for Heartstone. We found it interesting and wanted to pass it along for your reading pleasure.

 

The film takes place in a remote fishing village in Iceland and follows teenage boys Thor and Christian (Baldur Einarsson and Blaer Hinriksson) as they experience a turbulent summer. As one tries to win the heart of a girl, the other discovers that he has been harboring new feelings toward his best friend. When summer ends – and the harsh nature of Iceland takes back its rights – it becomes apparent that it’s time to leave the playground and face adulthood.

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Heartstone (c) Breaking Glass Pictures

Heartstone Trailer

In a remote fishing village in Iceland, teenage boys Thor and Christian (Baldur Einarsson and Blaer Hinriksson) experience a turbulent summer. As one tries to win the heart of a girl, the other discovers that he has been harboring new feelings toward his best friend. When summer ends – and the harsh nature of Iceland takes back its rights – it becomes apparent that it’s time to leave the playground and face adulthood.

 

Written and directed by Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson, based on his own experience growing up in a small fishing village, the core of Heartstone features a strong, beautiful friendship between two boys, and shows how their environment and inner conflict drive them apart, before the bond they share manages to reunite them again. Speaking of the film, Gudmundsson said “I believe Heartstone is a story that carries an important message for everyone, especially youth. A story of brotherhood, self-acceptance, strong girls and the importance of family.”

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