The Last Farm (2004)
"Síðasti bærinn" (original title)

An Icelandic short about an old man who might leave his farm keeps a secret.

Director:

Rúnar Rúnarsson

Writer:

Rúnar Rúnarsson

Stars:

Ólafía Hrönn Jónsdóttir, Jón Sigurbjörnsson, Sigurður Skúlason

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 13 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Ólafía Hrönn Jónsdóttir	...	Daughter
Jón Sigurbjörnsson	...	Hrafn
Sigurður Skúlason	...	Postman
Kristjana Vagnsdottir	...	Gróa

Storyline

In a remote corner of Iceland, winter is coming on. An aging farmer named Hrafn is doing has last chores before leaving with his wife Gróa for a retirement home in the city. Their daughter Lilja will be coming after the weekend to pick them up. She calls her parents, interrupting her dad's lunch. Her mother is napping. The stoic Hrafn wants to make sure she won't come before Monday. What are these last chores?

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Plot Keywords:

winter | retirement home | farmer | iceland | remote | 

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Genres:

Short | Drama

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Details

Country:

Iceland

Language:

Icelandic

Release Date:

October 2004 (Iceland)

Also Known As:

The Last Farm

Box Office

Budget:

€67,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Zik Zak Kvikmyndir

Technical Specs

Runtime:

17 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in 2005 Academy Award Nominated Short Films (2006)

User Reviews

A Beautifully Photographed and Acted Stark Look at An Old Man's Choices

"The Last Farm (Síðasti bærinn í dalnum)" is a moving visualization of Dylan Thomas's admonition of "Do not go gentle into that good night."

Amidst beautiful cinematography of rural Iceland, we see an old farmer methodically go about his plans. Through physical pain and the determination of a craftsman, he is very intent and serious.

For most of the film we think his monosyllabic interaction with friends and family is about closing up to resettle in a retirement community, though he certainly doesn't look happy looking at its colorful brochure.

In contrast to the preternaturally cheerful way that younger folks speak to him, this is one old wily independent isolate who chooses to live his life in his own distinctive way.

What at first seems macabre and shocking becomes a frank look at dealing with old age. With very minimal dialog, this stark film is very sympathetic to the farmer's unusual choices.

This film was viewed as part of a commercial screening of Oscar nominated shorts.