Driving Mum

Set in 1980, after the sudden passing of his mother, taciturn Jón takes her in the backseat, along with the family dog Bresnef, on one last trip to Eyrarbakki where she had always wanted to visit. Driving Mum is a clever, imaginative film that flickers in the light of various genres but develops its own distinctive character. The leading man, hirsute and unworldly, is heroic. His dog easily justifies third place on the credits. The film successfully negotiates the line between eccentricity and silliness: characters, scenes and events teeter at the far edge of implausibility but never topple over. Shot in monochrome it is often starkly beautiful, with colour added by the supporting cast.