A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

This movie was so amateurish it distracted from what ever the story was supposed to be about. It was a smuggling thriller but am still not sure exactly what they were smuggling vodka pills or both. (I think?? one group was smuggling pills another vodka and the hero's "friend" stole the money which he was supposed to pay out so landed him in trouble.The "good" smuggler evidently figured out a way to have the vodka laced with heroin or whatever he was smuggling float to the surface of the ocean where he ditched it at just the exact right time so it could be recovered. If you could have followed what laws of physics he exploited to achieve this at least it would have made sense. If that was even the case?This is below a B grade it is a Z grade Icelandic thriller movie....the smuggler/robin hood hero gets away with it.The main character's wife looked like she about to be raped a half dozen times and it looked like she was killed once including being totted around wrapped in clear plastic but ends up smiling in a hospital bed at the end of the movie.This thing is an amateurish dog. Iceland can surely produce something better than this. Confusing bad acting boring what else makes a movie a dud? This one had it. Maybe if I could have followed the logic of the story it would have helped.It gets 2 stars for the uniqueness of being from Iceland otherwise it would have gotten 1.Maybe you have to watch it twice to figure out the story. But nothing about this movie could force me to do that.DO NOT RECOMMEND

What begins as what seems to be a calm conversation over a cigarette between three young men, the opening scene of Reykjavik Rotterdam, directed by Oskar Jonasson (2008), quickly turns into one of the young men frantically running for his life from his two cigarette "friends." Unfortunately, Arnor failed to escape the two bruisers and gets a good beating. The reason for his overly hostile reprimand is because of a recent botched smuggling of alcohol, a job given to Arnor from his brother in law and former alcohol smuggler himself and main character, Kristofer. Since Kristofer vouched for Arnor to do the job, he has feelings of guilt and a sense of responsibility for his brother in law and his well-being. Struggling for money and the fact that he is an experienced and savvy smuggler himself, Kristofer is suspiciously roped into coming out of retirement for another alcohol smuggling affair to Rotterdam by his wife's ex boyfriend, Steingrimur, who seems to have an ulterior motive for pressuring Kristofer into doing the job. To his family's dismay, Kristofer accepts the job and boards a cargo ship with old crew members that are in on the smuggling as well. The captain of the cargo ship is anything but happy when he learns of Kristofer's presence on his ship, and is determined to catch he and other crew members in the act. Back in Reykjavik, Steingrimur's incessant scheming begins to feel routine when finally his real motive is revealed; he wants Kristofer to get caught in the act of smuggling alcohol because he knows that if he does, Kristofer will be in jail for a long time and in Steingrimur's mind that will surely lead to his eventual rekindled relationship with his ex girlfriend, which he will stop at nothing to achieve. A couple shootouts and even more fairly ridiculous twists set the stage for the rest of the rest of the film as the plot begins to unfold.Undoubtedly, there are various underlying themes beneath this Icelandic action-thriller. One of which is that of "class lines" and the vast difference between the "haves" and the "have nots". It is easy to see that Kristofer is struggling to make ends meet with a wife and two kids to support in addition to his criminal record of the past. Kristofer and his family already live in a very confined space and there is even a possibility of being evicted, in which case they may have to live with relatives, borrow money, or downgrade further yet regarding housing. On the other hand, Steingrimur represents the "haves" in this film. He is portrayed as a businessman type with money not being a problem in his life, and carries himself in a way that people will know that he is well off. Even more evident is his egotistical nature while at the same time has the ability to "kindly" manipulate situations in order to achieve what he wants. Although Steingrimur is better off monetary wise, Kristofer hands down has the edge in character. Even though both Steingrimur and Kristofer are criminals, Kristofer is solely in it for the money that is needed to support his financially struggling family, but the same can not be said for Steingrimur.Another strong theme present in Reykjavik Rotterdam I believe is that of love, and how love can drive anybody to do things they normally would never do. Case in point: a successful person like Steingrimur would normally never plot to have his ex girlfriend's husband imprisoned for the sole and self-centered purpose of ending up with Iris. However, his love for Iris drives him to do more than just set up Kristofer. He lies, manipulates, and commits serious crimes, all in the name of love. This eventually leads to irony when, after going through all that trouble to have Iris to himself, he is the one who accidentally kills Iris in a heated rage after his intentions and actions are put into question. Equally as evident is Kristofer's love for Iris and his children. He loves them dearly, and as a man does not want to have to borrow money in order to support the people he loves. But, because he loves his wife and kids, he will do nearly anything is order to support them and simply be together as a family.Overall, the film was very enjoyable to watch and see how the plot unfolded. Even better was the random comic lines and scenes that added another great aspect to the film, which along with the action and unique story line undoubtedly kept my attention throughout the entire film. My only caveat was that there were a few scenes as well as a twist that seemed just a tad bit unbelievable, but what's a movie without a little bit of over the top drama? It sure got sucked me in hook, line, and sinker. Other than that, I truly enjoyed the film as a whole and would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys a thriller with great acting, and not solely for international cinema guru's. 9 out of 10 stars.

Reykavik-Rotterdam has its moments, and lead actor Baltasar Kormákur does a pretty good job of maintaining a continuity through the film ... but, to be honest, there's not a lot that's extraordinary here. There's virtually nothing new to this one; it's a rework of ex-con trying to make ends meet and being reeled back into crime, with the kicker of having to help a dumb brother-in-law who's in over his head. Then you have the scheming business owner looking to cut in on the ex- con's lady, and manipulating others to take the ex-con out of her life. (Sound like something you've seen before?) Frankly, Warner Brothers started making this film over-and-over with the birth of the talkies, and the only new angle is containerized shipping as the backdrop and cellphone ringtones as embedded clues.The cast is certainly fine, but they don't have much to work with as far as their characters. You don't get a sense of anything beyond a bunch of low-lifes aspiring to nothing more than than the continuation of their low-lifedom. And the comedic bits are somewhat shoehorned in for quick and unsatisfying relief -- except for the goofball gangster sequence in Rotterdam, which really didn't last long enough.It's not a bad movie at all, but it's not something that bears repeat viewing ... it's a spot of entertainment, but wound up in rather tired film clichés. And it's nowhere near the level of an Academy Award nomination for best foreign film.

Reykjavik-Rotterdam is not only a thriller, but also a family story. Although the beginning is violent, and violence is there throughout the movie, the family elements, i.e. the main character, Christophers family gives the movie depth and a realistic perspective. The comedy element is also there throughout. This excellent combination of thriller and comedy throws the audience between laugher, excitement, thrill and compassion. The part that happens in Rotterdam gives the movie a fresh peak. Baltasar Kormákur handles the main role (Christopher) brilliantly. It is nice to see him act again after an absence of the screen for quite a while. One would guess that his emphasis on working as director and producer the last years has leveled him upward as an actor. Ingvar Sigurdsson also delivers his character (Steingrimur) with fine sensitivity, as often before. There are two new upcoming stars worth to mention. Lilja Nott (Iris) is convincing as the mother of two boys and wife of Christopher, which has obviously not been too easy to handle often before due to his smuggling habit. Jóhannes Haukur (Eiríkur) has a strong presence and is convincing as the violent drug dealer. He has arrived to stay in the Icelandic scene at least. I definitely recommend Reykjavik-Rotterdam.