Lamb (2021)
Director: Valdimar Jóhannsson Run Time: 106 min. Rating: R Release Year: 2021
Starring: Björn Hlynur Haraldsson, Hilmir Snaer Gudnason, Noomi Rapace
Country: Iceland, Sweden, Poland
Language: Icelandic
“Splicing the dark heart of a folk-horror movie into the fluffy body of a rural Icelandic relationship drama”
—Jessica Kiang for Variety
About the film:
Awarded the Prize of Originality in the Un Certain Regard competition at Cannes 2021. A childless couple in rural Iceland discover a mysterious newborn in their sheep barn. Fully committing themselves to parenthood, they soon face the consequences of defying the will of nature.
Lamb is Iceland’s official submission for Best International Feature at the 94th Academy Awards.
About the filmmaker:
A striking feature debut from director Valdimar Jóhannsson, who co-wrote the story with novelist, poet, and lyricist Sjón. Johannsson was a student at filmmaker Béla Tarr’s Film Factory in Sarajevo. He directed the 2008 short film Harmsaga, and has worked as an electrician on Game of Thrones, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, and Noah, among others, and in the special effects department on features like Prometheus and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
His latest film Lamb also won a Cannes Palm Dog Grand Prix award for its canine performer, Panda the sheepdog, though creating the visual poem Jóhannsson envisioned—inspired by Icelandic art, literature, and music—also involved working with some uncooperative sheep. Read more here.
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