One of the finest and most visually sumptuous dramas of recent times is Godland, a movie by Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason that opened in 2022 to rave reviews. It tells the story of Lucas (Elliott Crosset Hove), a Danish priest who, in the late nineteenth century, is tasked with building a parish church in a remote Icelandic settlement. However, when Lucas’ translator drowns in an accident caused by Lucas’ insistence on crossing a swollen river, the priest is left without friends or a way to communicate with the rest of the party. As the church is built, Lucas forms a friendship with Anna (played by Azrael star Vic Carmen Sonne), the daughter of Carl (played by A Royal Affair’s star Jacob Lohmann), his host; but it turns out the priest is not quite as moral a man as he seems. The leisurely pace is largely set by Pálmason’s magisterial approach to the film’s visuals, and cinematographer Maria von Hausswolff’s excellent work gives full rein to Iceland’s stunning, treeless landscapes. There is a multitude of reasons why this film looks so utterly incredible.
Great Cinematography Emphasizes ‘Godland’s Story of Moral Obligation and Isolation

Image via Snowglobe Films/Garagefilm International

Godland’s cinematography is nothing short of outstanding and underpins the story of moral obligation and isolation at every turn. The film opens in Denmark, in a church. Lucas listens to an older cleric who gives him the details of the task ahead of him in Iceland. The dialogue does give us necessary context, but the mise-en-scène adds an additional and important layer of meaning.
The two-shot features the men on either side of a table, and while the fixtures, fittings, and the food laid out before them are all simple, the fact the cleric eats heartily while addressing Lucas, managing his knife and fork with practiced hands, can be read as a silent indictment of the church. The image of the cleric, mouth full of food, while casually using foul language, militates against viewing the institution—and therefore Lucas—as being an uncomplicated force for good. The shallow depth, the stopped-down camera, and the extreme length of the shot—exactly two minutes—also prepare the viewer for what’s to follow.
Long Takes Match ‘Godland’s Meandering Pacing

The near-glacial pacing works to the film’s advantage, underscoring the slow pace of Icelandic life compared to the more bustling land of Denmark. Pálmason emphasizes this by including various extremely long single takes. Every so often during the long trek to the settlement, Lucas stops to take a photograph, putting the folks who are accompanying him in order to build the church into situations that emphasize both the fastnesses around them and their own discomfort. On the other hand, a remarkable, two-minute-long 360-degree panorama of Carl’s community during a marriage celebration underlines just how comfortable they all are with each other, making Lucas’ isolation in the community all the more obvious.

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More breathtaking visuals follow, all framed in an austere 4:3 format that mirrors the sparse landscape. A discussion of sex by gruff islander Ragnar (played excellently by Justice League actor Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson) is juxtaposed with shots of darkly flowing waterfalls; the image of a lost crucifix wrapped in packing paper floating away on the tide symbolizes Lucas’ loss of his moral compass. Pálmason also gives the viewer the chance to luxuriate in extremely long pans across the Icelandic landscape, and its role in bringing death—whether it be a horse or a human—is examined via the use of static camera shots focusing on a single spot (such as a patch of field, or a rise overlooking a plain) over a period of months, or longer—one sequence, which kept a single camera in exactly the same spot, took two years to film.
Slow zooms on characters during monologues give added weight to their confessions to a priest who is rapidly shedding himself of his social rectitude and who seems more interested in his photographic equipment and in satisfying his sexual desires rather than in the spiritual care of his flock. Is Lucas really shaping Christianity on the island, or is the island—with its capricious weather, stark surroundings, and hard living—ultimately shaping him?
Godland is available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S.
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