Black's Game
Film poster
IcelandicSvartur á leik
Directed byÓskar Þór Axelsson
Screenplay byÓskar Þór Axelsson
Based onSvartur á leik
by Stefán Máni
Produced by
  • Þórir Snær Sigurjónsson
  • Skúli Malmquist
  • Arnar Knútsson
Starring
CinematographyBergsteinn Björgúlfsson
Edited byKristján Loðmfjörð
Music byFrank Hall
Production
companies
Distributed bySena
Release dates
  • 1 February 2012 (2012-02-01) (Rotterdam)
  • 2 March 2012 (2012-03-02) (Iceland)
Running time
104 minutes
CountryIceland
LanguageIcelandic
Budget150000000 ISK[1]

Black's Game (Icelandic: Svartur á leik) is an Icelandic crime film from 2012, directed and written by Óskar Þór Axelsson.[2][3][4][5][6] It is based on the novel of the same name by Stefán Máni about the drug trade in Reykjavík in the mid-1990s.[7]

In the 2013 Edda Awards, Óskar Þór Axelsson won Screenplay of the Year (Handrit ársins), Damon Younger won Best Supporting Actor (Leikari í aukahlutverki) and María Birta Bjarnadóttir won Best Supporting Actress (Leikkona í aukahlutverki) for the film.[8][9] It became the second highest grossing Icelandic film of all time.[10] A prequel to Black's Game is due to be released in 2024, and a sequel in 2025.[11]

Plot

Black's Game takes place during the uncertain times of the mid-nineties, when Reykjavík's underworld is expanding and becoming more dangerous. The audience follows the rise and fall of a cast of characters; Stebbi, an ordinary man who gets involved in the drug world through his childhood friend, Tóti. Tóti works for Jói Faraó, the country's biggest drug baron since the 1970s. Tóti together with Brúnó take over Jói's business and change the drug market. At the beginning of the film, Stebbi is facing charges for a fight he got into when he was drunk. He comes across Tóta, who offers him the best criminal lawyer in the country if he comes to work for him. A little later, when Brúnó returns from his self-imposed one-year exile abroad, Stebbi sees that there is a lot of tension under the surface. Brúnó is amoral and thrives on danger and crime. Tóti, on the other hand, is in touch with reality and only wants to run a profitable company. An internal conflict begins with Stebbi is stuck in the middle. The story is told from Stebbi's point of view, and the first half of the film goes back and forth between Stebbi, who is learning the ropes and becoming a member of the gang with decent prospects, and Tóti's backstory and the beginnings of the gang. In the second half, Brúnó has returned and the gang has begun to break up. It ends with Stebbi finding himself stuck between Tóti and Brúnó.[12]

Cast

Production

In 2005, the film companies Zik Zak Filmworks and Filmus bought the film rights to the book and employed Stefán Mána to write the screenplay.[13] However, Oskar Þór Axelsson later took over the job of screenwriter and in 2008 was chosen as the film's director. Black's Game took over seven years to produce and financing proved difficult. Andri Sveinsson and Heiðar Guðjónsson were the main investors in the film, but it also received a 64000000 ISK grant from the Icelandic Film Fund. At the beginning of 2009, and auditions were announced for the students of the Iceland Academy of Arts.[14] In preparation for his role in the film, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson hired a personal trainer and started exercising six times a week.[15] Þorvaldur Davíð Kristjánsson was chosen for the role of Stebbi, but Stefán Máni, the author of the book, said that he had always envisioned him as the character.[16]

References

  1. ↑ "Höfðu ekki efni á að auglýsa og notuðu því samfélagsmiðla". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). 13 March 2012.
  2. ↑ "Black's Game". Icelandic Film Centre.
  3. ↑ Felperin, Leslie (11 February 2012). "Black's Game". Variety.
  4. ↑ Rooney, David (9 February 2012). "Black's Game: Berlin Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
  5. ↑ Ard Vijn (5 February 2012). "IFFR 2012 Review: BLACK'S GAME". Screen Anarchy.
  6. ↑ Andrew Mack (2 August 2012). "Fantasia 2012 Review: BLACK'S GAME". Screen Anarchy.
  7. ↑ "Hostel-framleiðandi vinnur að íslenskri glæpamynd". Vísir (in Icelandic). 22 March 2010.
  8. ↑ "The Deep Wins 11 Edda Awards". Iceland Review. 18 February 2013.
  9. ↑ "Edduverðlaun 2013". Edda Awards (in Icelandic). 5 September 2013.
  10. ↑ "Óskar Þór Axelsson". Creative Artists Iceland.
  11. ↑ "Svartur á þríleik". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 6 October 2022.
  12. ↑ "Svartur á leik (2012)". kvikmyndir.is (in Icelandic).
  13. ↑ "Svartur á leik eftir Stefán Mána kvikmynduð". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 23 April 2005.
  14. ↑ "Manna undirheima". DV. 14 February 2009. Archived from the original on 2009-02-14.
  15. ↑ "Jóhannes Haukur Ordinn Helmassadur". DV. 14 April 2011.
  16. ↑ "Þorvaldur er Stebbi Psycho". Vísir (in Icelandic). 12 November 2009.
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