Reykjavík Grapevine - aug 2021, Qupperneq 22

A Super-Cop
Solvin! Crimes
‘Leynilö!!a’ brin!s action and comedy to the
Icelandic film scene
Words: Alina Maurer Photo: Stills from ‘Leynilögga’
“I think it’s a comedy made by
people who want to be making
an action movie,” Hannes !ór
Halldórsson laughs, referring to
his upcoming directorial debut
‘Leynilögga’. His name probably
rings a bell—but from a totally
different sector. A professional
footballer and goalkeeper of the
Icelandic national team, Hannes is
unarguably most famous for saving
a penalty kick from Lionel Messi in
the World Cup in 2018. However,
defending the goalposts is not his
only passion—he has long been in
the filmmaking industry, direct-
ing numerous advertisements and
music videos. Now, he’s finally here
with a full-length feature.
Jack-of-all-trades
“I’ve been working as a filmmaker
for 15 years. But now I’ve made my
first feature film—which was al-
ways my goal—and earlier than I
expected,” he says. ‘Leynilögga’,
he explains, is a comedy-action-
drama, which is quite atypical for
Icelandic filmmaking.
”Icelandic films often have this
tendency to be quite slow and de-
pressing. Many of them are good––
but they're not always fun,” Hannes
describes. “The core concept was to
make an action movie placed in the
small city of Reykjavík. None of the
things happening make sense […]
but because we're making a com-
edy, we can allow ourselves every-
thing.”
The movie—which Hannes
co-wrote with Nína Petersen and
Sverrir ‘Sveppi’ !ór Sverrisson—is
a romp through the lens of a cop.
“The cop’s name is Bússi and he
is the number one badass cop in
Reykjavík. But then there’s another
guy, the best cop in Gar"abær, and
they're rivals. The two towns don’t
like each other,” Hannes explains.
“Then the two cops have to deal
with a mysterious series of bank
robberies, where nothing seems to
be stolen. So they must partner up
and there's a lot of tension between
them.”
Of course, there’s a twist—no
spoilers here—that Hannes prom-
ises will surprise viewers. All we
can say is that the aforementioned
macho-cop Bússi is dealing with
some personal issues. “He needs
to get over his own prejudice,”
Hannes elucidates. “There is a jour-
ney and we are taking the subject
seriously. We really worked on giv-
ing the movie soul.”
Movie/football balance
The idea for ‘Leynilögga’ arose ten
years ago, when Hannes took part
in the popular Icelandic comedy
show “Auddi & Sveppi”. Just for fun,
Sveppi and Hannes created a rough
trailer for ‘Leynilögga’ and the idea
was stuck.
“We had been talking about it
for years after the trailer came
out. In fact, we were contacted by
movie companies in Iceland, so we
wrote the first draft back in 2012.
But then I became a professional
football player and was abroad for
six years and the project just fell
to the side,” Hannes says. Even-
tually, the production company
Pegasus contacted the duo and the
first seeds for success were sown.
Now, ‘Leynilögga’ will premiere at
the Locarno Film Festival, while
screening in Icelandic movie the-
atres at the end of August.
This was a fun movie
Above all else, Hannes hopes this
film will bring some laughter and
joy in these difficult times. “I
think people are thirsty for some
fun movie entertainment, so this
is a fantastic time to come out with
Leynilögga,” he muses.
“I just want people to say, ‘This
was a fun movie.’ That's my num-
ber one goal,” he concludes, pulling
down his sunglasses and smiling.
“But if it leaves something behind
and raises some questions, that’s a
nice bonus.”
A scene you see o'en on the streets of Reykjavík
When they put the wrong toppings on your pylsur...
Film
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