Head Above Water

Colour, 35 mm
Norway, 1993, 100 min
Section: Norwegian Cinema
Oficiální stránky: www.nfi.no

Synopsis

The film is set on a desolate island in southern Norway, where newlyweds Einar and Lene are spending the summer. Their only other companion is Björn, Lene’s friend from childhood, with whom Einar departs on a two-day fishing trip. During their absence, the island is visited by Gaute, Lene’s former psychologist and lover, who gets drunk and falls asleep naked in the marital bed. Lene wakes up in the morning to the sound of the siren heralding the return of the men’s boat. When Lene tries to goad Gaute into action, she discovers he is stone dead. She panics at the thought of her husband’s jealousy and hides the corpse beneath a trap door in the floor. But she can’t close it properly and Einar treads on it, causing the audible sound of Gaute’s neck breaking. Einar seemingly accepts Lene’s explanation, but what do they now do about the body? The police would suspect murder. And anyway, why and how did Gaute die exactly?

About the director

Nils Gaup (1955, Kautokeino, Norway) began studying at Oslo’s Drama School in 1974. After three years he then worked as an actor for several Norwegian theatres and was one of the founders of the Lappish (Sami) stage company Beaivvas Sami Teahter. In 1985 he launched the project The Pathfinder - an old Lappish legend he used to hear as a child. This film enjoyed a great response from viewers and was nominated for a Best Foreign Film Oscar in 1987. After this success, Gaup had several offers from Hollywood and his next film was Shipwrecked, which was partly financed by Walt Disney Studios. Head Above Water (1993) is his third feature film.