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Astropia

If you don't like this movie, Magnificent Bastard doesn't like you!
Starring: Ragnhildur Steinunn Jonsdottir, Snorri Engilbertsson, Halla Vilhjalmsdottir, Halldor Magnusson
Rating: 9/10
Directed By: Gunnar B. Gudmundsson
Runtime: 93 minutes

Let me start off by saying that I went into this film expecting to love it. It had shown at the beginning of Fantastic Fest to rave reviews. RAVE reviews. I had also done a little chatting with the director and writer, and they were some of the nicest guys you could meet. So finally, when I got in to see Astropia, part of me was deathly afraid that I wouldn't like it and would have to face Gunnar and Otto and try to fudge my way through something sort of complimentary. Luckily, this was not the case. I absolutely loved it.


Astropia is the story of Hildur, a gorgeous socialite with a wealthy boyfriend, no job, and a few flaky friends. Everything seems great for her, until the wealthy boyfriend gets arrested for cooking the books at his car dealership. Hildur is left with no money, no house, and no car; her friends won't be seen with her, the media is hounding her, and she's taken in by her oh-so-normal sister. But with no cash, locked credit cards, and no way to support herself, Hildur's sister insists that she get a job. On a chance trip to the comic book store with her young nephew, Hildur asks the manager about the "now hiring" sign in the window. And luckily for her (and us), she's hired to work the RPG section of the store. It probably goes without saying that Hildur knows absolutely nothing about RPG, until the guys from the store invite her over for a game. Hilarity ensues.

One of the winning points for this film is that it's so damn cute. Heartwarming, you might say. Prejudices are broken, the awkward underdog gets the girl, the douchebag gets his cummuppins, happily ever after and all that shit. And not in the sugar-sweet after-school-special sort of way. This ain't The Cosby Show. It's a feel-good movie that you won't feel bad for enjoying.

Probably my favorite thing about this movie is that it's for geeks, by geeks. We've all seen Hollywood's take on fads and subcultures and know how often they miss the mark. Too often the media and big-box entertainment pull out either an hour and a half of bland stereotypes, or they are so completely wrong that it's hilarious (see: Reefer Madness). But not so with Astropia, maybe because it's not a Hollywood movie. It's from effin Iceland - that's about as far from Hollywood as you can get. And every word, every nuance, every gorgeous landscape, is so absolutely fitting, and it's because the writers didn't just research and interview people who know about comics and RPG. They are people who know about comics and RPG. Pay attention to the scene where one of the shop employees is giving an 8-year-old boy "educational videos" - "You like dogs, yeah?" *hands him Cujo* - and the perfectly placed battle cry in the film's glorious finale. I laugh to myself just thinking about it.

And one last thing that I loved about this film: anyone can love this film. It's not just fun for people who know the subculture, or just people who have even seen an RPG before, or just sci-fi/fantasy fans; the engaging story, clever dialogue, and endearing characters make this incredibly accessible to a wide audience, in the way that Freaks and Geeks was enjoyed by people that weren't in high school, or Buffy was huge with viewers who weren't vampires (or vampire slayers, or werewolves, or charming British men). Want proof? Astropia was the top grossing movie OF ALL TIME in Iceland when it was released, beating out The Dark Knight and Pirates of the Caribbean. I, for one, am greatly impressed.

So. Get this movie! Watch it! Love it! If you're not feeling warm and squishy by the end, you've probably been hit with a Mind Flay.