I caught this when it originally aired on HBO and was pleasantly surprised. Two charming performances by Bill Nighy and Kelly Macdonald anchor a sweet, unconventional romance set against the G8 Summit, of all things. He’s an advisor to the Exchequer, with little more in his life than work. She’s a lonely Scottish woman he happens to meet in a cafe (in a great “meet cute” scene.) In very little time both of these withdrawn characters have formed a tenuous relationship when Nighy’s character uncharacteristically invites her along with him to Reykjavik. This is a muted, adult romance that’s rooted in character study. While the ending doesn’t live up to the promising first half, it’s still worth while for Nighy’s subtle, wonderful performance.
Forget Bill Nighy – worthwhile for the wonderful Icelandic scenery!
I agree about the ending: They tried “too hard” to get the massage across (I know that doesn’t sound right because the message IS very important, but you can’t desert one half of the story to serve the other half), but loved it, loved it, loved it!!!