Dorks & Damsels (2007)
"Astrópía" (original title)

When Hildur - a beautiful high society girl and a regular guest in the national celebrity press - finds out that her boyfriend Jolli is about to go into jail, she realizes she has to learn ... See full summary »

Director:

Gunnar B. Gudmundsson

Writers:

Ottó Geir Borg, Jóhann Ævar Grímsson

Stars:

Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir, Snorri Engilbertsson, Davíð Þór Jónsson

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir	...	Hildur
Snorri Engilbertsson	...	Dagur
Davíð Þór Jónsson	...	Jolli
Sverrir Þór Sverrisson	...	Flóki
Pétur Jóhann Sigfússon	...	Pési
Halla Vilhjálmsdóttir	...	Beta
Jörundur Ragnarsson	...	Scat
Halldór Magnússon	...	Goggi
Sara Guðmundsdótti	...	Björt (as Sara Marti Guðmundsdóttir)
Alexander Sigurðsson	...	Snorri
Gunnar Jónsson	...	Steini / Voice of Cowboy
Steinn Ármann Magnússon	...	The Don
Víkingur Kristjánsson	...	Fangavörður #1
Björn Thorarensen	...	Fangavörður #2
Dóra Jóhannsdóttir	...	Viktóría

Storyline

When Hildur - a beautiful high society girl and a regular guest in the national celebrity press - finds out that her boyfriend Jolli is about to go into jail, she realizes she has to learn to stand on her own two feet. Hildur possessing no skills or any practical experience tries to find work but without success. She's about to give up when by pure coincidence she lands a job selling role playing books and accessories at the local fantasy-shop Astropia. From that moment her life transforms. At Astropia Hildur is introduced to a group of nerds who give her a new outlook on life. Among them are Dagur a translator of romantic fiction, Scat a rapper who makes his nerdlyness look cool, the comic and video clerks Floki and Pesi, the violent tomboy Beta and an eight year old whizkid Snorri. Gradually unlikely friendships are formed and Hildur enters the fantasy world of role playing where she struts around in a skimpy outfit slaying Orcs and Goblins and the world of adventure starts blending...

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Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy

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Details

Country:

Iceland UK Finland

Language:

Icelandic

Release Date:

22 August 2007 (Iceland)

Also Known As:

Dorks & Damsels

Filming Locations:

Hafnarfjörður, Iceland

Company Credits

Production Co:

Icelandic Filmcompany, The, Kisi Production, Solar Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

WILHELM SCREAM: Heard when the DJ get's knocked down after the opening credits.

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Connections

References Poltergeist (1982)

User Reviews

The Icelandic Reese Witherspoon in a sweet, fun/silly movie

Were this an American movie, the producers would doubtless hope to cast Reese Witherspoon in the lead. It's the story of a bimbo girlfriend who has to fend for herself after her slimeball car-dealership-owning boyfriend is arrested. Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir starts out as a plastic-y trophy and grows into someone cute, warm, and surprisingly capable. It's a trajectory not unlike Legally Blonde, and Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir handles her role as Hildur as convincingly and engagingly as Witherspoon did in her corresponding role.

I don't play role-playing games, or even video games, and my taste in movies tends to the heavier stuff, but I like to praise the rare lightweight upbeat movies that work for me. It's not saccharine, and while Astrotopia (what Netflix calls this movie) is clichéd in the overall arc of the plot, it is relatively fresh in the moment-to-moment of the movie. I'm not big on visual gimmicks, but the scene-fades into comic-book panels are precisely appropriate and an added little delight.

The scenes and characters in the nerdy fantasy store where Hildur finds work were reminiscent of the record store scenes in High Fidelity. Not exactly new territory, but enjoyable in the same way.

Overall the movie had a nice quirky quality without being too darn cute or shoving its upbeat-ness down the viewer's throat. I enjoyed it a lot more than I had expected I would.