Iceland’s Oscar© 2023 Submission for Best International Feature: ‘Beautiful Beings’ by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson

A teenage boy adopts a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders. Left to their own devices, the boys explore aggression and violence but also learn about loyalty and love. As their behavior escalates towards life-threatening situations, one, Addi, raised by a clairvoyant mother, begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions which tentatively pull him back from the edge as the film takes us on a path filled with danger.

Watching this film, I was inevitably drawn back in time to 1991 when my friend and contemporary, the Icelandic director Fridrick Thor Fridrickson was nominated for the Academy Award for Children of Nature, the only Icelandic film ever nominated for Best Foreign Language Film. It was the first of six of his films submitted to the Academy, more than any other Icelandic director.

(Ágúst Guðmundsson, Baltasar Kormákur and Hrafn Gunnlaugsson have each represented Iceland four times. In 1990, Guðný Halldórsdóttir became the first Icelandic woman to represent the country.)

Perhaps those were simpler days. Fridrickson’s growing up in the 60s and making making movies in the 90s gave him a different outlook. Fridriksson’s films have a strong rooting in Icelandic culture and often depict characters at the crossroads of tradition and modernity. Guðmundsson‘s characters are at crossroads as well, but more of dismal modernity and the chaos we feel today as possible future scenario for us all. As for Icelandic culture: if this is a sample of Icelandic culture then to compare the two films is like trying to bridge an abyss one never dreamed existed in Iceland. Guðmundsson says that he and his childhood friends come from normal working-class families. But the culture is less that of Iceland than of worldwide working class alienation from the bourgeois culture shown in Fridricksonn’s films.

Fridriksson’s films combine a wry sense of humor and genuine solidarity with the characters. Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson also has a genuine solidarity with the characters and there is a sarcastic humor, less subtle and less kind. Both Guðmundsson’s and Fridriksson’s films are deeply personal.

The four boys in Beautiful Beings form a tight unit of themselves against the world. There’s a real camaraderie and their ensemble acting is a winning combination. Friendship and confused emotions, raw notions of manhood and tender acts of kindness mix enough to keep you watching as you fear for these young men. Spoiler Alert: At the end, only two end up happier and wiser for all they have gone through, and the process of the four coming to grips with the grim lives they and their parents live is sometimes excruciating to watch.

The prevalent emotion is horror, not as in a horror movie, but as in seeing real life at such a low denominator. One must ask, does this show what has happened in Iceland over the past 50 years since Children of Nature?

That said, perhaps audiences have also become more inured than I to such raw scenarios as testified by the fact that the film has won top honors and has earned positive reviews.

In the Berlin Film Festival 2022 it won Europa Cinemas Label prize as best European film in the Panorama section. It also screened in Karlovy Vary International Film Festival — Horizons, Transilvania International Film Festival — Competition, Guadalajara International Film Festival — Premio Maguey Competition, Istanbul Film Festival and in
Biografilm Festival 2022 where it won the Italian Critics SNCCI Award. In
Off Camera International Festival of Independent Cinema it won FIPRESCI Jury Award and in the Taipei Film Festival it won the International New Talent Competition Special Jury Prize.

Watch the official trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFIhZsQhy_4

The film is very well-done. The many shots of hands — wringing, trembling, bloody, acting as signs of the emotional states of its inarticulate characters is a smart device. The boys themselves at the transitional age between boyhood and manhood were well chosen. I would be happier with less visually dark scenes where I could barely make out the outlines of people or shapes.

Let’s hear what Gudmunson has to say about the place of this film in his own development and in cinematic traditions today and this second feature shows promise of a shining career. The film is in a direct line of descendency with those coming of age films of directors such as Rob Reiner, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Larry Clark, Alfonso Cuaron and Gus Van Sant.

As I was exploring stories to write for my second feature film, certain dreams haunted me and did not stop until I started writing this story. On top of that, in my family, the belief in meaningful dreams and supernatural senses.

Beings brings up the questions: What is true friendship? Can boys who seem like bad influences still be good friends? And finally, how do you find your own path? What is the importance of listening to one’s intuition?

As a filmmaker my hope is to give the audience an authentic sensation of being a teenager. We should experience the boys’ world like we are there with them. I love the visual and poetic aspects of film and I am a strong believer in the importance of the stories we tell. I went into filmmaking because I aspired to move people and enrich their senses, like many great films have done for me. I hope that Beautiful Beings also does that for some, with a story about friendship, the importance of role models, self-acceptance and intuition.

How did you find your actors?

We have no professional actors within this age range, in Iceland, therefore we start by inviting kids over the whole country to an open casting. Then slowly we narrow our selection down to the final group. This is done approximately a year before the principal shooting. After we have our group of kids we invite them for an acting workshop where we teach them the basics of acting before introducing them to their characters and the script. We set it up in small steps alongside their school as it is important that it become an enjoyable experience and they can grow as actors before having too much responsibility placed on them. When it comes to the principle shooting they are all very well prepared.

You have dealt with boys and the passage to adulthood in all four of your films, will you continue to explore this or are you looking at other themes?

Childhood and adolescence is a very interesting period as they can be almost in another world than adults. I remember thinking as a kid that grown ups around me had little idea what was really going on in my and — friends’ lives. I know I want to tell more stories related to young people but that doesn’t exclude stories with adults. Right now I want to explore the supernatural element further that I touch on in Beautiful Beings. I have a certain dream project, fairytale and hope to have the opportunity soon to bring it to an audience.

What happens to you in the process of writing and producing?

I work very intuitively when I write and direct. It is always a balance between structure and exploration. Filmmaking has so many layers of storytelling, emotion, visuals, sound and telling a good story with all the elements is very important to me. Then it is the whole collaborative part where you have amazing talents supporting the process. I enjoy the shooting process the most, the bubble that you enter and the creative collaborations.

What happens to you between films?

I have a production company called Join Motion Picture that I co-founded and own with my long time associate. So when I am not working on my own projects I’m developing or producing the projects of others.

What do you consider your strongest attribute as a director?

The ability to turn obstacles into opportunities. I truly believe problems are just another side of opportunities and if I keep going with that mentality I always find myself in a good place at the end.

Where do you feel least assured?

I find it a bit limiting not being able to communicate as clearly with my composer as I can with other creative partners. I never studied instruments as a kid so technically I am limited. Still on the other side it is also a bit exciting as that forces me to let go more and become more open to different outcomes that can be very pleasant.

Title — BEAUTIFUL BEINGS
Country — Iceland
Director — Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Screenwriter — Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Cinematography — Sturla Brandth Grøvlen
Editor — Andri Steinn Gudjónsson, Anders Skov
Original Music — Kristian Eidnes Andersen
Producer — Join Motion Pictures
Starring — Birgir Dagur Bjarkason, Áskell Einar Pálmason, Viktor Benóný Benediktsson, Snorri Rafn Frímannsson, Aníta Briem, Ísgerður Gunnarsdóttir, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson
International Sales — New Europe Film Sales

US Distributor — Altered Innocence

Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson graduated in Fine Art and studied screenwriting. His short films and feature debut have been showcased and awarded in numerous festivals. Among these accolades are Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival and a nomination for the European Film Awards. His debut feature “Heartstone” premiered in the Venice Days Competition in 2016 and ended up collecting over 50 awards worldwide.

Filmography

2022 Beautiful Beings (123min)
2016 Heartstone (129min)
2014 Artun (20min)
2013 Whale Valley (15 Min)

Produced

2019 A White,White Day (109 min, Executive Producer, Join Motion Pictures) 2019 SEALSKIN (13 min, Executive Producer, Join Motion Pictures)
2016 Heartstone (129 min, SF studio & Join Motion Pictures)

Selected Review Excerpts

“An Icelandic Coming-of-Age Tale Radiant with Violence and Tenderness.”
“Boasts an outstanding juvenile ensemble cast.”
“Ravishing.”
“Subtle, underplayed edge of magic realism.”
“There is a freshness and an inhabited vibrancy that makes this painful coming of age story feel exactly its own.”
“A story told poetically, impressionistically, through sun-flare and cigarette smoke and the somehow heartbreaking details.”
“Tenderness that breaks through the veneer of toughness.”
“Captivating, even when… brutal.”
Jessica Kiang — Variety

“Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson’s sophomore Icelandic feature finds tenderness in a cruel adolescent world”
“The impressive second feature from Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson confronts the feral cruelty and violence of children on the cusp of adulthood, but finds also a tenderness amid the sharp edges and posturing”
“Gudmundsson clearly has strong instincts for casting and a knack for coaxing nuanced performances from young actors”

Wendy Ide — Screendaily

A story about growing up, friendship and survival, but also a portrait of overwhelming moral decay and neglect, Beautiful Beings confirms 40-year-old Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s talent as a sharp and sensitive director with a knack for conveying strong emotions through tiny brushstrokes, much like the great affection hiding behind these four bullish protagonists’ small gestures, without ever sliding into superfluous cruelty.
Vittoria Scarpa — Cineuropa

“A sensitively told tale of healing and growth.”
“Gently dissects various performances of masculinity.”
“Plenty of surprises in store for the audience.”
“Admirably sensitive and affirming.”
“A moving tale of friendship and recovery, despite all the sadness and trauma that run through it.”
“Guðmundsson portrays this co-existence of masculine aggression and soothing tenderness with vivid, richly textured images. The camera frequently gets very close to the characters, catches their most minute glances or gestures, and emphasizes the luminous nature that surrounds them.”
Eren Odabaşı — ICSFilm.org

“Beautiful Beings is the latest triumph from (…) Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson, whose distinctive lyrical style makes him one of the most impressive talents on the international indie film scene.”
“The director avoids simplistic solutions in a subtle narrative that uses its ample running time to explore every single chink of the boys’ developing personalities and how they react with each other.”
“Silver Bear awarded DoP Starla Brandth Grovlen (Victoria) works wonders with his camera”
FILMUFORIA

“A compelling mix of warmth and darkness that will shake you up before it will melt your heart”
“Beautiful Beings takes on the glamour and the anxieties that define teenagehood”
“As humanistic as it is unsettling.”
“Much of the film’s raw effectiveness is due to the young cast’s wisdom and effortless on-screen chemistry.”
“There is honesty to the central performances that endears the boys to the viewers”
“(Beautiful Beings) focuses on delivering a unique presentation — impressionistic imagery and gentle nods at magical realism complement a more grounded, down-to-earth aesthetic; neither style dominates, rather, they converse and flirt with one another.”
EYE FOR FILM

“an affecting coming-of-age melodrama that gently dissects various performances of masculinity”
“Beautiful Beings gradually evolves into an unexpectedly sensual and dreamlike (and often nightmarish) experience with plenty of surprises in store for the audience”
“At its core, this is a moving tale of friendship and recovery”
“Guðmundsson portrays this co-existence of masculine aggression and soothing tenderness with vivid, richly textured images”
“this lovely Icelandic drama turns into a sensitively-told tale of healing and growth in Guðmundsson’s capable hands”
ICS FILMS, USA

“Its premise seems to lean heavily on familiar tropes, but the magic is in the execution.”
“Director Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson has delivered a film with a distinctive freshness, and a grimly compelling plausibility”
“There’s a real camaraderie amongst the young cast, with the strength of the writing combining with the actors’ characterisations to ensure that the roles all seem like fully realised people”
“intelligent and confident, and more than a bit unsettling in places”
THE UPCOMING