The Seagull's Laughter (Mávahlátur) (2002)

84% of critics liked it
(32 reviews)
66% of users liked it
(688 ratings)

Agust Gudmundsson's Mavahlatur (The Seagull's Laughter) is a comedy/drama about a woman who comes to an Icelandic town. Freja (Margret Vilhjalmsdottir) arrives in the town claiming that her husband has passed away. She moves in with some extended family members, including her eleven year-old cousin… More Agust Gudmundsson's Mavahlatur (The Seagull's Laughter) is a comedy/drama about a woman who comes to an Icelandic town. Freja (Margret Vilhjalmsdottir) arrives in the town claiming that her husband has passed away. She moves in with some extended family members, including her eleven year-old cousin Agga (Ugla Egilsdottir). Freyja rekindles a romance with the financially secure Bjorm (Heino Ferch), and manipulates him into a relationship. Bjorn's mother turns out to be more than Freyja could handle. The Seagull's Laughter competed at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 42 min.
Directed By: Agust Guomundsson, Ágúst Guðmundsson
Written By: Ágúst Guðmundsson
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: Oct 20, 2001 Wide
On DVD: Mar 1, 2005
Studio: Cinema Guild Inc

Critic Reviews

Janice Page, Boston Globe
Lively and beautiful filmmaking.
Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle
Seagull often is on the verge of melodrama, but in the best sense of the genre, where real life is exaggerated but never to the point of being unrecognizable.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
An uncommonly engaging comedy with ripe tragic undertones.
John Petrakis, Chicago Tribune
Writer-director Agust Gudmundsson skillfully balances romantic comedy and melodrama with a coming-of-age story and morality play.
Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times
The cast is a sparkling ensemble, with Vilhjálmsdóttir adept at keeping us guessing about the mercurial and complex Freya's true nature.
Matt Weitz, Dallas Morning News
Part character study, part thriller and part coming-of-age drama, it doesn't quite pull these disparate elements completely together but is nonetheless entertaining and darkly funny.
Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com
The film captures the quaintness of provincial life with humor and drama, deftly mixing in feminism, too, in a way that is subtly funny and even a little disturbing.
Sean Means, Salt Lake Tribune
[The movie] boasts an engaging assortment of female characters and an arch sense of humor as biting as the Icelandic winds.
Jeff Vice, Deseret News, Salt Lake City
The performances are solid, and the film is just different enough to please open-minded audiences.
Marta Barber, Miami Herald
Some scenes drag, but Seagull's Laughter is still delightful.
Matt Kelemen, Las Vegas CityLife
Vilhjálmsdóttir is a superb femme fatale ... Freya eventually becomes a symbol of empowerment and impending change, a symbol that transcends good and evil.
Laura Kelly, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
A solid example of why foreign film lovers adore foreign films.
Josh Bell, Las Vegas Weekly
As long as Egilsdóttir is on screen, the film is a small but satisfying delight.
Marc Savlov, Austin Chronicle
The most interesting thing about the film -- apart from two smashing performances from Vilhjálmsdottir and Egilsdóttir -- is the glimpse it provides into 1950s Iceland.
Frank Swietek, One Guy's Opinion
An uncommonly engaging tale of tradition, change and growth in a strangely haunting locale...its stylishness carries the film over most of the rough spots.
Jules Brenner, Cinema Signals
An awkwardly told story steeped in attitudes toward stereotypes with an annoying portrayal of a little girl's obsessed dedication to betray trust and affection.
Chuck Wilson, L.A. Weekly
Scenically beautiful, rhythmically uneven comedy.
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone, TheMovieChicks.com
Iceland may be cold, but the people are sure friendly enough (most of the time). This group certainly made me smile.

Read all 18 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Randy T

A fantastic dark comedy from Iceland. Beautiful Freyja, recently widowed, returns from America to compete with the local ladies for the attention and affection of the island's most eligible bachelors. She'll stop at nothing to obtain what she wants: arson, battering… More
A fantastic dark comedy from Iceland. Beautiful Freyja, recently widowed, returns from America to compete with the local ladies for the attention and affection of the island's most eligible bachelors. She'll stop at nothing to obtain what she wants: arson, battering delinquent little boys, flinging live cats at her mother-in-law, maybe even murder(?).

Cast

Margret Vilhjalmsdottir
as Freyja
Ugla Egilsdottir
as Agga
Heino Ferch
as Bjorn Theodor

See full cast

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