Island of Lost Souls

Review by David Bjerre

INTRODUCTION

Remember when you were a kid, before you realised how the world really worked? Back then a simple story could haunt your dreams for years to come. This was especially true for movies. I vividly recall watching "Raiders of the Lost Ark" for the first time many years before I should have, and I could never quite shake the image of those beautiful souls that turns into deadly ghosts in the explosive finale.

In the Late 70's and the 80's Hollywood produced a host of films that ended up influencing an entire generation. "Star Wars", "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "Poltergeist" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" were among the titles that even today - with gazillion dollar budgets and unlimited possibilities in visual effects - can't be matched. Watching these films can make you feel like an old soul, longing for better days.

Danish director Nikolaj Arcel obviously feels the same way, because with this, his sophomore feature, he has created a 98 minute love letter to these films and the legacy they've left behind. It's a unique event in Danish cinema to be sure, but I would argue that it's also a unique event in world cinema. Even Hollywood can't make those films anymore.

Yes, this is the biggest adventure film in Danish film history. Yes, it has more digital effects than "Jurassic Park". And yes, it borrows heavily from all the American blockbusters that came before it, but forget that for a moment and look at the film from a different angle: "Island of Lost Souls" is a film that reminds us of a simpler time. A time when films and everything they brought us could be described with a single word...

Magic.

THE STORY

Copenhagen 1871.

Thunder rolls over the city. Everything is drenched and only flashes of lighting momentarily light up the dark. No God-fearing man should venture into this storm. Yet out of this hellish night a horse carriage emerges. It pulls up to an old building and a man steps out into the rain. His name is Herman Hartmann and this is the meeting place of a secret lodge sworn to combat evil. A powerful dark magician, a necromancer, has been caught and the lodge plans to put an end to him using their most powerful weapon: The magic of the sacred lodge book. Little do they know that the Necromancer is already too strong for them.

A young girl Linea, the only one from the lodge capable of handling the lodge book, steps up and begins to chant. Suddenly the Necromancer wakes up and grabs Linea. Herman rushes to help her, but there is nothing he can do. Finally Linea manage to thrust the Necromancer out of the window, but after that she falls lifeless to the ground. Evil has claimed another victim and Herman is inconsolable.

Present day.

14 year old Lulu has just moved to the small rural town of Broby with her mother Beate and kid brother Sylvester. Her father ran away with his young secretary, and now the family is looking for a fresh start.

Lulu is a quite girl, obsessed with magic and the occult, but not much else. She's got a "I want to believe" poster on the wall and a Ouija board in the closet, and every night she tries to contact the spirit world, praying for some kind of contact, but nothing ever happens.

Then, on their first night in the new place, a strange sound wakes up Sylvester. Suddenly a tiny floating light appears, and moments later it plunges into his chest and seems to disappear.

The next morning Sylvester is acting very strange. He's not the pain in the ass little brother Lulu has gotten used to, in fact he suddenly talks like a man from the 18th century and she begins to suspects that something is really wrong. The next night Sylvester sneaks out of bed and Lulu follows.

She watches as Sylvester walks to the pier, seemingly drawn towards Monk Island, a small island not far off the coast. Suddenly the neighbourhood boy Oliver shows up and moments later Sylvester discovers them both. Then he makes a shocking revelation...

"My name is Herman Hartmann," he says. "I died in 1873 and I ended up in your brother's body by mistake."

The light from the other night was the spirit of Herman. He has now taken over Sylvester's body and in his new form Herman can hear the cries of a thousand lost souls trapped on Monk Island. Something very evil and very dark has taken refuge there and it must be stopped at all costs. And Lulu and her new friends are the only ones who can stop it.

Now a disenfranchised young girl, her possessed brother and a timid neighbourhood boy must go up against the ultimate evil to save Broby... and the rest of the world.

REVIEW

What a blast! I feel transported to the golden 80's! I can't remember the last time I saw a film as unapologetically adventurous as this. And yes, I know it doesn't stand a chance when compared to the $200+ million American summer blockbusters, but who cares? It uses its (by international standards) limited budget to maximum effect and it's got a wonderful cheeky deadpan humor. Most importantly "Island of Lost Souls" has a twinkle in the eyes I haven't seen in a very long time.

The central premise is familiar. The story is a patchwork of elements borrowed from the great adventure/fantasy films over the years. Traces of "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "Poltergeist", "E.T." and "Return of the Jedi" show up in the film. There's also a dash of "Harry Potter" in the story and even a bit from "Ninth Gate".

When I originally saw Nikolaj Arcel's first film "Kongekabale", I felt relieved. Here was finally a Danish director who wasn't afraid to actually entertain the audience, and who didn't fear comparisons to the great American classics ("All the President's Men" was a great source of inspiration for that film) in fact he embraced it. And this film is no different, thank God.

Arcel gleefully throws himself into this purebred action-adventure, by stealing what he can from his favorite films and combining it with an unmistakable Danish mindset, thereby creating a completely original style.

A big problem with this kind of action films - as evidenced by the countless lame Hollywood blockbusters - is that they have a habit of getting away from the director. The sheer logistics involved tend to bog down the second act of the story with exposition - to make sure the audience can keep up - only to leave the third act with an uninspired checklist of action scenes that has to be resolved for the big puzzle to make sense.

Arcel doesn't fall into this trap. He manages to get through all the tiresome exposition in a breeze, by squeezing a lot of information into seemingly innocent character scenes. The approach never feels forced or staged, and in those rare cases where the whole thing is on the verge of becoming a little too ridiculous, Arcel disarms us with a simple dumbfounded look from one of the characters!

Most importantly, despite the inherit predictability of the genre, Arcel manages to keep the surprises coming. He doesn't telegraph his intentions, often we don't know where we'll end up until we get there. So instead of simply sitting and waiting for the big action scenes., there's an air of excitement and unpredictability about the film. And to me that's its most important asset.

Arcel's attention to detail and astute observations make seasoned filmmakers like Lars von Trier, Bille August and Susanne Bier seem like a bunch of 2-year olds with a box of crayons.

Style & Action

In terms of the look and feel of the film, this is easily the best Scandinavian effort yet, and it certainly gives Hollywood a run for its money.

The film has a rich detailed look with beautiful saturated colors. From the brown and orange sunset hues of Monk Island over the gorgeous blue tinted night scenes to the warm yellow washed-out tones of "normal life" every frame looks amazing. Cinematographer Rasmus Videbæk has done an outstanding job. Videbæk previously worked on "Kongekabale" with Arcel, and he also shot "Nói albínói" for director Dagur Kári and a couple of episodes from the TV-series "Krøniken" ("Better Times").

A good adventure film must have some show-stopping action scenes and this one has two major sequences.

In the middle of the film we have the exhilarating "scarecrow chase". An astonishing sequence that opens with a creepy scarecrow monster and ends with a chase on a tractor through the rain. Then of course there's the big finale, a showdown with the bad guy, where multiple storylines converge and people are throwing magic lightning bolts at each other left and right.

These are the kind of scenes that'll make you hold your breath and scream advice to the characters on the screen (I caught myself yelling "Run... ruuuuuuuun!" quite a few times) and they are usually only found in the biggest Hollywood blockbusters. It's great to see a small Scandinavian film that has the guts to try something like this. Nikolaj Arcel once again reveals his fearlessness as he pumps up these scenes with everything he's got. He refuses to play it small or safe, now THAT's how you make an adventure film!

The final punctuation mark - just in case you still have doubts that this film can match anything Hollywood has to offer - is the score by english composer Jane Antonia Cornish, which is virtually indistinguishable from the works of John Williams. That's not a critique, mind you, that's a big plus in my book. After all, what kind of music, other than that of Williams, could accompany such a story?

Theft or Homage

As I mentioned earlier, this film borrows heavily from the great 80's classics. Just look at the scene where the kids are driving through the city on their bikes. Pure "E.T."! So one question present itself: Is it okay to do such a thing? To steal from the great ones like this film does? Where does the line between theft and homage go?

Well, to put it simple: The great ones aren't that great anymore. Spielberg hasn't done a real Spielberg film since he got an Oscar, Zemickis hasn't done a real adventure film since the "Back to the Future" trilogy ended, so who else is left? Nobody actually. That's why it's important for present filmmakers to embrace the style from the past, especially at a time when Digital Effects, instead of storytelling, rule how films are made.

Obviously the "Indiana Jones" and the "Star Wars" films were no stranger to effects. But in the old days effects were hard to do, not just expensive and time consuming, but they were actually hard work, which meant that they were used in a completely different manner.

Hollywood must be forced to shift it focus away from digital effects and go back to relying of storytelling and to do that we must speak in the only language Hollywood understands: Competition. If that means re-watching the classics and taking what we can from them, to make new films better, fine by me. I don't have a problem with the way "Island of Lost Souls" is infused with the spirit of the classics. I applaud it! And I hope others will follow Nikolaj Arcel's example.

Sara & The Cast

Young Sara Langebæk Gaarmann is the star of "Island of Lost Souls". She fights not only a Necromancer from ancient times, but also a film that pulls no punches in terms of action and effects. And yet, in the midst of this inferno, Sara still manages to make a lasting impression. In 10 years she may be the heartbreaker to end all heartbreakers, but right now she's that perfect mix of childhood innocence and budding teenage defiance. A role model to the teen girls, a potential crush for the teen boys and the perfect center for the film. She's confident and assured, and plays the lead role as if it was the most natural thing for her to do. The look of determination on her face in the final showdown is a star making moment if I ever saw one!

In fact Arcel has succeeded remarkably well in getting solid performances from all his young cast members, who walks, talks and thinks like real kids.

Lasse Borg, who plays Oliver, represents the audience as we're thrown into this harrowing adventure. We can easily sympathize with Oliver's reactions. He often says just the right thing, and he screams like a girl when the situation gets really bad. And because he's such a wimp he also makes Sara Langebæk look good! That's more than most grownup supporting actors manage in a film.

Equally impressive is the performance by Lukas Munk Billing in the part of Sylvester and "Sylvester possessed by Herman", two very different states! He also perform double duties in the story, serving both as the voice of exposition and the composed heroic counterpart to Lulu. And he's 12! Lukas has the world-weary look of Herman down to perfection, just watch the scene where he's thrown to the ground in the middle of a fight and sighs "I'm too old for this". Priceless.

Sara and Lukas get their feature film debut here and Lasse has only appeared in one film before this. I'm blown away by their performances here, and though I'll admit there's one or two shady reactions here and there these three kids actually carry the entire film on their shoulders.

Let's briefly cover the adults as well.

Nicolaj Kopernikus stars as Richard, the crackpot shrink/ghostbuster who helps our heroes. He delivers a very humble supporting turn that never overshadows the kids, plus he often gets the funniest lines in the film. His heartfelt introduction of a failed spirit detection device - the "Spector Tracker X-2000" - left me in tears.

Then of course there's Lars Mikkelsen (brother of Mads Mikkelsen, the villain from "Casino Royale") as the Necromancer. He is just plain SCARY! Mikkelsen starred in the impressive post-war TV-series "Edderkoppen" ("The Spider"), and even then he had an intensity about him that's hard to shake. Combine that with a bald head, which emphasize his piercing eyes, and the ability to shoot lightning (or whatever that is) from his hands, and you got one hardcore bad guy that feels genuinely threatening.

Anders W. Berthelsen playing the adult version of Herman also deserves a mention. He played the lead in Arcel's first film "Kongekabale" (The King's Game) and it's nice to have a friendly face such as his to introduce us to this strange world.

WRAP-UP

"Island of Lost Souls" sold only 200.000 tickets in Denmark, roughly half of what such an expensive project should be able to command. The critics loved it, but it didn't capture the audience to the extent the filmmakers had hoped.

Part of the reason for the film's "failure" (it'll probably still be among the 5 most watched films in 2007) was the muddled ad campaign. The trailers were confusing, focusing too much on the action, and they failed to pin down exactly who this film is meant for. So let me be absolutely clear about that: Anybody who can sit through a Harry Potter film should enjoy "Island of Lost Souls". Everyone from small kids to grandparents, as long as they're not too scared of too bored by Harry Potter they'll be on board.

I sincerely hope the film will be more successful in the rest of the world than it was here in Denmark. I can't think of a film that deserves it more.

As you will undoubtedly have realised by now I loved "Island of Lost Souls" to death. To me it was such a sight for sore eyes. An entertaining and ambitious film that refuses to think small and only stops to take a breath when it's turning blue in the face. A welcome reminder that the spirit of movie magic is not gone. It's out there somewhere. All we need is someone who has the courage to summon it.