The Sky Palace

Various events of importance to the nation and to individual persons during the cold war and from about 1960 emerge as fragments of the memory of a little boy learning about life, about divorce, military occupation, the Beatles, little girls and death.

The film tells the story of a young farmgirl moving to Reykjavík after the second world war, and her attempts to adapt to the city life.

The film tells the story of the charming, ninety-three year old lady Gudny, who is staying in the nursing home of Hrafnista in Hafnarfjördur, Iceland. She tells tales of her pet rat from her home region in eastern Iceland, paints, sings in the choir, plans to stage a theatrical sketch and play the leading role. We also meet Sigurdur Olafsson, who claims to be in Paradise, and Klara Tryggvason, who gets her visits in mail and by phone; most of her children are living abroad. We visit Leifur Eiriksson, who changes making his bed into a ritual of physical exercise. Gudny has only learnt the Lord's Prayer and the Bible Stories, but she knows how to tell a good story and radiates the wisdom of the ages. "Why can't we talks about death?", she says. "My grandchildren ask: Grandma, are you sure you'll be with God?" "Yes, quite sure".