When I first heard of this film, the reason for that is because Matt was looking at Máni’s IMDb page and saw he was involved in this film, both as a composer and an extra (playing himself). I first thought it wasn’t true since this film is really adult in regards to its theme but after talking to the composer himself on Facebook, it’s true.
This film is really hard to find physically since a DVD is probably close to non-existent (unless we visit Iceland) but there is a website where you pay €3 just to rent it for a day.
So Matt and I arranged a date and we both watched the film “Wallpaper: An Erotic Love Story” by Júlíus Kemp.
Before watching this, I’ve looked up on what this film is about and see if it’s worth spending €3 just to see Máni’s few seconds of screen time. This lead to me asking Máni about some facts and information about the film in general.
“It’s one of the first Icelandic movies to cover “modern” things and young people”
I also looked up on what Icelandic news article have said about the film and sadly, there isn’t a lot of articles and reports posted online about it. The closest I was able to find to a “review” was from the Reykjavik Grapevine in 2007 where they talked about the musical impacts the music has done for both the movie and for Icelandic pop-music.
Júlíus Kemp played a huge role in this film, and I mean that literally. He directed, produced, wrote, and acted (as an extra I believe) in the film. I guess this was possible in Iceland in 1992??? I mean, he didn’t change the name of the bands, they use their actual names and perform their songs in it. According to Grapevine, one of the reasons they believe this film made a musical impact in the Icelandic film as it was able to intertwine with the country’s music scene.
“Audiences were heavily influenced with the combination of music and pictures, birth of new music movements, and were ready to take on the pop-cultural crossovers that lay ahead”
About the film
The film is about a girl name Sol who dreams to become a singer. She who works in a bar that’s run by 2 men named Sveppi (the son of the previous owner) and Lass (Sveppi’s best friend). Sveppi and Lass made a bet on who could have sex with Sol first.
Like said earlier, the film uses actual bands to play a role in both the soundtrack and the plot and the film talks about serious topics that both Matt and I were shocked and surprised to see when it was shown on screen.
Thoughts
Matt and I have decided to share both our thoughts on the film since it was quite an interesting film to watch. We both enjoyed it but we also have things we want to discuss.
WARNING: There will be spoilers and serious themes will be discussed
Plot
The story is straightforward but yet there are some parts of the story that I question such as “Do the bands get paid after Sveppi’s arrest?“, “Why did Sveppi (I think) body shamed that one guy in the shower?“, “What is the full story of Lass dropping out of art school“, and “Can mushrooms really drug a person?“.
While those questions are just us nitpicking, the biggest question that not only Matt and I asked, but some of our friends when we told them about this film, “Why is it called Wallpaper?“.
Some of them believed (including Matt) thought someone would have ‘wallpaper sex’ (whatever that is???). This was questioned because other titles such as Fifty Shades of Grey or Shape of the Water, the title is pretty straightforward to what the film is about. But after thinking about it, as well as rewatching a few scenes, I think it’s symbolic.
When defined in the dictionary, “Wallpaper” means “paper that is pasted in vertical strips over the walls of a room to provide a decorative surface“. Throughout the film, both Lass and Sveppi have two contrasting ways on how they view women, Lass paints, Sveppi takes photos of them and adds them to his ‘collection’ of other women he had sex with.
The film talks about dark/heavy topics such as rape and drugs as Sveppi does a lot of shady things in order to get Sol’s attention. He literally goes over to her house, sees her sing in front of the mirror, then uses that to make her convinced that he’s a good person, but in reality, he just wants to rape her by drugging her with mushrooms.
But it’s not all dark since there was a scene where Sol’s uncle talks about how he feels about being in the music industry, despite Sveppi being a dick, he’s got Lass’ back and attacks the guy who abused his mother, Lass’ being all shy to tell Sol how he feels but keeps an eye on her during the early parts of the film.
According to Matt, he compares this movie to Vulgar as it deals with the same dark themes as this movie but fails to be comedic.
There is this one scene I want to talk about and that is the “swimming pool” scene. One of the characters comes out naked and a kid yells it out and the guy goes back in to get something to cover up.
Reason for mentioning this is because I watched this video which talked about what to do while in Iceland. One of the things mentioned in the video is the reminder to cover up when you’re in the pools. So I ask, IS FORGETTING TO COVER UP REALLY A THING IN ICELAND?!?!
I mean I live in Australia so nudity in beaches isn’t something new but it’s Australia, a country that reaches 47.8 degrees back in December 2017. THIS IS ICELAND, a really cold country! Why would people forget to cover up?! (I really need to visit the country)
Cinematography
Everything is well lit and well framed.
What I liked about most in regards to production is the lighting as it helps define the character’s motives. Like, you already know Sol is an innocent girl with hopes and dreams and Sveppi abusing his power just to manipulate Sol, but the lighting placed towards these characters gives more emphasis on their personalities and motivations.
This seems like basic knowledge for every aspiring filmmaker but this is well executed, especially since we know what these people are like.
Acting + Characters
According to Matt, the acting is good to a point and most of the actors play their part well. He finds the acting little cheesy at times, especially the people playing smaller or minor characters. But it’s not too bad and bearable. He is impressed on the way Ingibjörg Stefánsdóttir portrayed Sol’s escape scene from Sveppi, how it was not only believable but showed she’s willing to fight, even if she’s drugged.
I just wanted to see Máni for a few seconds.
The acting is ok in my taste. I feel like it’s a 90’s Icelandic version of Fifty Shades of Grey but only if Christian is way more manipulative than he already was in the film and Sol is literally Anastasia Steel.
Music
This film uses existing bands to play as themselves and I think it’s really interesting to merge the fictional with reality. Matt likes the 80’s/90’s vibe the soundtrack has, as well as Máni’s compositions for Pis of Keik and background music for the film.
For me, Árás by Pis of Keik is my favourite. A music video sequence was shown in the film as part of ‘Sol’s fantasy‘ and I feel like it was like a tribute to Madonna as it reminded me of Vogue
Overall Thoughts
Not going to lie, Matt and I were both very uncomfortable when we found out about this film. One reason is the title because the first thing in our heads when reading is ‘porn‘. But when watching, it was an attempt to appeal to older Icelandic music fans in the 90s.
It’s interesting as a film itself, something I would watch again if I feel like it in a few years time. Matt, however, thinks it’s a bad film and shouldn’t be watched again, despite it having a good cast and music. I guess the only reason we were interested to see this is because Máni was involved.
We both give a 3/5 for this film. It’s interesting but also a bit uncomfortable if you’re not used to seeing a film that talks about rape, sex, and drugs.
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