WOMAN AT WAR: A Strikingly Original Take On The Hero’s Journey

The sophomore feature from Icelandic writer-director Benedikt Erlingsson (Of Horses and Men), Woman at War tells the story of one woman striving to make a difference in the global environmental crisis of which so many people somehow remain in denial. Equal parts thriller and fairy tale, with a dash of comedy thrown in for good measure, it’s a unique piece of global cinema that should go a long way towards easing any awards season hangovers you may currently be nursing.

The Hero We Need

Halla (the brilliant Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir) appears to lead a quiet life as a choir director, but secretly she is also a passionate environmental activist who aspires to the ideals of Gandhi and Mandela – two men whose portraits hang in places of honor on her wall. Even her twin sister Ása (also played by Geirharðsdóttir), a somewhat daffy yoga instructor who wants nothing more than to retreat into a meditative state for a year or two, doesn’t know about Halla’s double life.

Known to others only as “The Woman of the Mountain,” Halla is single-handedly trying to halt the operations of an aluminum plant in the Icelandic highlands by regularly shooting arrows up into the power lines. However, just as Halla is preparing to take her sabotage to the next level, she receives word that an application to adopt a child that she submitted years ago has finally been approved; a little girl orphaned by the conflict in Ukraine is waiting for Halla to come and take her home.

Torn between her dream of becoming a mother and her goal of saving the highlands from impending industrial destruction, Halla decides to make her final and most daring move yet – except now there is so much more than her own freedom at stake if she gets caught. Is she willing to risk something she has wanted for herself for so long for the sake of the greater good?

Style and Sabotage

Inspired by the classic format of the hero’s journey, Erlingsson makes a bold stylistic choice in Woman at War that could have felt hokey in less committed hands but instead adds additional emotional heft to Halla’s story. Two different musical groups – a trio of Icelandic folk musicians and a trio of traditional Ukrainian singers – appear on camera performing the film’s haunting musical score by Davíð Þór Jónsson. Indeed, from the very first moment we meet Halla, out in the countryside armed with her bow and arrow, we see her traipse past the trio of folk musicians as though they were just another part of the glorious Icelandic scenery.

Occasionally the musicians break the fourth wall, such as when they pick up copies of Halla’s manifesto as she drops them in town and tweet out her message so that it can go viral. But even in these moments, their presence feels utterly natural, as though it would be more bizarre for them to not be there. (Credit must also be given to cinematographer Bergsteinn Björgúlfsson, whose beautiful work gives even the more mundane scenes in Woman at War the aura of a fairy tale.) As a Greek chorus would address both the hero and the audience during ancient plays, so these musicians seem to both influence Halla’s actions and the audience’s perception of them. It’s an intriguing artistic gamble that pays off in spades thanks to Erlingsson’s confident direction, and it lifts Woman at War above other films laden with similarly serious subject matter.

Woman at War deals with a number of heavy subjects with a surprising amount of humor. A running subplot involving a Spanish-speaking tourist who keeps being falsely arrested as the saboteur just because he is a foreigner in the wrong place at the wrong time is a searing indictment of the way the world treats outsiders, but still laugh-out-loud funny. Halla’s interactions with her much less grounded sister also bubble with humor, which is all the more impressive when one considers that Geirharðsdóttir is merely playing off herself.

Despite Halla’s destructive actions, she is at heart a nurturer who longs for something to care for, whether that be the small child waiting for her in Ukraine or the Icelandic wilds that surround her. In the dual roles of Halla and Ása, Geirharðsdóttir is so convincing that it took me until the final third of the film to be sure that it was the same actress embodying both characters. Geirharðsdóttir infuses Halla with natural strength and a deep belief in what’s right that will earn your sympathy from the start; her ability to hold her own opposite the aforementioned musicians, who could have potentially overshadowed a lesser actress, is proof of her remarkable onscreen presence. This is a woman worth following into war.

Woman At War: Conclusion

A movie mirror-image to last year’s First Reformed – Paul Schrader’s powerful tale of one man’s sacrifice for the sake of the wider world – Woman at War is a strikingly beautiful story of one woman’s desire to do good. Thanks to the unique artistic flourishes of Erlingsson and the powerhouse dual performances of Geirharðsdóttir, it will echo in the senses long after it is over.

What do you think? Does Woman at War sound like an interesting tale of the global environmental crisis? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Woman at War is released in the U.S. on March 1, 2019 and in the UK on May 3, 2019. You can find more international release dates here.