By HOWARD McQUITTER II

oldschoolmovies.wordpress.com

howardmcquitter68@gmail.com

“The Deposit” (2019) ****1/2 Askja Films

Drama

Here again, I”™m reporting from the 38th Minneapolis-St. Paul Inter-national Film Festival with another gem of a film only this time it”™s from Iceland. What”™s exciting, too, is the director is on site to take Q&A, and her name Asthildur  jartansdottir.

Gisella (Elma Lisa Gunnarsdottir) is in a real economic  straits after losing her journalism job and her investments with her former boyfriend failed to pay off. And to be expected she begins to panic as bills start to pile up with the possibility she may lose the nice house she acquired from her grandparents. Then Gisella goes to the computer looking for immigrants to rent her two empty rooms. She finds three illegal immigrants living under a slumlord in a seedy part of town and convinces them to move into her house. Two women Maria  Raffaella Brizuela Siguroardottir), Abeba (Enid Mbabazi) and little daughter Luna (Clire Harpa Kristinsdottir) take up the empty rooms. At first, almost everything goes smoothly before a rift becomes evident when the two immigrant women take issue with Gisella over house rules such as having men sleeping over and the like. Gissella begins to ask Abeba about Luna”™s school — when and where she goes causing Abeba to be possessive of her daughter.

“The Deposit” is a most timely film at a time when the immigration problems ”“ both legal and illegal ”“  have dragged in Democrats and Republicans into the fray in the U.S. And in Europe there is similar debates and fallouts, Iceland notwithstanding. In Iceland, for example, a homogeneous that country prides itself on tolerance is seriously tested as new faces in the country are brown and black, largely from different religions, eat different foods, dance and sing to “exotic” music, and so forth.

Gisella is tested, too, taking in illegal immigrants; and with careful steps, the illegal immigrants must be aware of authorities who might detect and deport them. Right-wing politicians, as well as segments of the population often with racist intent, cause much stress for immigrants seeking asylum in Europe or United States from  violent gangs, domestic abuse, terrorism from government forces and the like. 

Cast: Elma Lisa Gunnarsdottir (Gisella), Enid Mbabazi (Abeba), Raffaella Brizuela Siguroardottir (Maria), Claire Harpa Kristinsdottir (Luna), Sveinn Olafur Gunnarsson (Andres), Solveig Guomundsdottir (Lovisa). Director: Asthildur Kjartansdottir. 

Language: Icelandic. Running time: 90 minutes.

Related Images: