When the Raven Flies (1984)

An Irish man seeks vengeance against the vikings who killed his parents.

Director:

Hrafn Gunnlaugsson

Writers:

Edda Andrésdóttir (additional), Hrafn Gunnlaugsson

Stars:

Jakob Þór Einarsson, Edda Björgvinsdóttir, Helgi Skúlason

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jakob Þór Einarsson	...	Gest
Edda Björgvinsdóttir	...	Gest's Sister
Helgi Skúlason	...	Thord
Gotti Sigurdarson	...	Einar (as Gottskálk D. Sigurdarson)
Flosi Ólafsson	...	Erik
Egill Ólafsson	...	Thord's Brother
Sveinn M. Eiðsson	...	Guard
Gunnar Jónsson	...	Erik's Retainer
Þráinn Karlsson	...	Olaf the Childlover
Anna S. Karlsdóttir	...	(as Anna Karlsdóttir)
Abba M. Jóhannsdóttir
Anna Reynisdóttir
Arnaldur Friðgeirsson
Ármann Ingason
Birgir Guðjónsson

Storyline

Ireland: Vikings pillage the land, seeking silver and slaves, slaying men and women in the process. A young boy is spared when a Viking takes pity on him instead of killing him. Iceland 20 years later: The boy returns to take his revenge on the killers, the Norwegian foster brothers; Thord and Eirik, by cunning and hidden weapons.

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Plot Keywords:

viking | sword and shield | female nudity | ireland | irishman | 

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Taglines:

To him the vengeance was all that mattered - to her forgiveness (Swedish theatrical tagline)

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Genres:

Action | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Iceland Sweden

Language:

Icelandic

Release Date:

25 April 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

When the Raven Flies

Filming Locations:

Iceland

Company Credits

Production Co:

Film, Viking Film, Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

Is the first Icelandic feature film to use post-produced sound and dialogue (in fact no on-set sound was used at all). All sound effects were created by Pétur Hjaltested. Similarly, all the weaponry was designed and created by one person.

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Quotes

Thord's Brother: Guest took the silver from Björn. He probably followed him all the way to Rome. Then he goes all the way to Iceland to put it on Erik's table. Strange man that steals from the poor to give to the rich. I would enjoy meeting such a man. Who was the man who said Björn stole the silver? Was it not Erik?

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Connections

Followed by Shadow of the Raven (1988)

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Soundtracks

Á Sprengisandi
Written by Sigvaldi Kaldalóns

User Reviews

Television not Cinema

I am confused by the magnanimous praise for this film. First of all, let me respect it for its unsensational style. It expressed the everyday unromantic experience of what it must have been like then. In this way, it avoided Hollywoodism, but when I consider how the film-makers could have incorporated vast vistas as a cinematic expression of the isolation of these communities I was dismayed. These people lived in immense isolation, but all we were given 90 percent of the time were tight shots, and landscapes were generally presented as one section of the pebbly beach with some stark rocky islands off shore. And let us consider the opening (of the version I saw). There was no attempt at establishing the historical context. Instead, we got close shots that could have been anywhere, and certainly shot in the style for 'straight to video". Come on! The script was clever, with the potential for a great dramatic experience, but the director must have been limited by a highly restrictive budget, because it ended up looking like 'made for TV'. The synthesized music was occasionally effective but surely deeper chords would have created an ominous atmosphere. The hero did not really have any tense challenges. He seemed to cruise through it all. While I sort of liked him, I never had a sense of his jeopardy. In short, there was no dramatic tension. In this sense, there was an echo of some of Clint Eastwood's movies, but without the stylishness. There was an assumption that we were on the protagonist's side, but why deprive us of his human vulnerability as he seeks revenge? I feel that the writers deserve a bigger budget to prove to us that they can create a truly cinematic experience rather than a small dimension TV drama. I have not seen the subsequent 2 parts of the trilogy.