One of the most intriguing and devastatingly vivid films of the year is out this week. This unnerving, frosty detective movie is right up there with the very best of the genre.

Haunting and enigmatic, this incredible film from the Icelandic director Baltasar Kormákur is unlike anything else you might stumble across. This stark and chilling detective movie generates a sort of pristine dread all of its own. Comparable in some ways to Erik Skjoldbjaerg's Norway-set Insomnia, Jar City is worryingly serene in the face of evil. A film blanc to remember.

 

Inspector Erlendur (Sigurosson) is investigating the murder of an elderly man, raking up very little other than a photo of a girl’s grave and a standing accusation that the man might have been invlved in a terrible crime. Digging into this even colder case, Erlendur finds himself tracing genetic secrets to find the killer’s identity. What sets it apart from the procedurals is the parallel story, Erlendur’s own domestic troubles. He is attempting to keep his drug addict daughter (Erlendsdottir) under control, which strains the detective until the strands of his case and personal life begin to tie together.

 

This is a remarkable piece of work, right up there with the classics of the genre like Se7en and the recent Gone Baby Gone. Disturbing though it may be, it's a consummate piece of storytelling. Rape, incest, murder – enjoy!

 

An interview with the director: