Godland achieved an overall appreciation score of 72%. Many members enjoyed the cinematography, especially on a big screen; while some found the film overly long and lacked plot development. Some of the comments submitted:
- Superb cinematography and acting. It is because of seeing films like this on the big screen that I have been a member of the film club for 27 years!
- A fantastic film from every viewpoint – plot, acting, camera work. All excellent.
- Totally absorbing and wonderful dig at the vanity and hypocrisy of the church the square format made for a really intimate watching experience.
- So glad I invested 140 minutes in watching this film. Time more than rewarded: a beautifully crafted film with some of the most stunning images I’ve seen on film, brilliant actors in the two lead roles and a storyline that kept me invested throughout. Great choice!
- Very visual, with beautiful cinematography. It held our interest all the way through, even though it was a very long film.
- Time has gone by but this was the second time I have seen this film – enjoyed greatly on both occasions. The story reminded me of the novel by Wilar Cather : Death Comes to the Archbishop, but in this story the priest’s mission was a great deal more negative. I didn’t know about the Danish conquest of Iceland. Thought provoking and a truly beautiful setting.
- Too long, and tedious in parts, but still strangely gripping.
- Interesting but quite bleak.
- A “slow” film, which allowed me to get fully involved with the characters and the relationships portrayed, particularly that between the main character, Lucas, and Ragnar the lead guide. The “slowness” meant that the dramatic moments (eg. the death of the translator, Lucas’ breakdown at the mid-point of the film) were all the more effecting/shocking. The undulation between peace/beauty/calm and despair/death/loss of meaning seemed well managed by the director, with the final embarrassment, crime/shame and eventual death of Lucas indicating how “lost” he had felt since the beginning of the film; so lost that he ends up miles from either home that he might have had.
- Awfully bleak. Something to be endured rather than enjoyed. One gets a little tired of priests being painted as villains.
- Bleak but rewarding. The viewer was drawn in by the sheer effort to overcome the landscape and the cinematography was impressive in revealing the sheer size of the landscape. The tension between the two main characters was not fully revealed possibly due to subtleties of language difference between the Danish and Icelandic. The film is certainly memorable and worth another viewing.
- Film far too long for the story being told.
- Too long! The main character was the landscape beautifully shot but I think it failed to develop the character of the priest.
- Long, slow, boring, horrible priest character, didn’t enjoy.
- Full of errors, improbabilities, bad continuity, a somewhat wasted evening.
- Good opening and build-up, establishing lead character’s relationship with Ragnar. Journey through Iceland was interesting and well shot, but almost as if the film didn’t really know what to do once he reached his destination. No real plot or character development, ‘shocking’ moments of the film were only so because there was no significant build-up or pre-cursor to them, they felt too ‘sudden’ and thus not convincing. Very disappointing after a promising start.