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If there is a God...

Godland (Vanskabte Land, Volaða land, Icelandic, Danish; 2022)
Written & Directed: Hlynur Pálmason

The colonial masters must have thought they were doing the natives a favour by coming to their country and 'civilising' them. The religious people of the colonising race thought bringing religion to their shores would 'save' the natives from the eternal damnation of hellfire as well as earn them a few brownie points in the eyes of God.

Actually, the primary aim of the invaders was to get manpower. Europe had awoken from a great slumber. They had improved their weapons and were on a rampage. They had devised a way to mass-produce agricultural produce. For that, they needed manpower, and slavery was found to be a convenient way. After all, the African leaders would bend over backwards to capture their kind and enemies from opposing villages for this trade.

When people from the West heard of the abysmal conditions in which slaves lived and worked, a boycott of slave-produced products was mooted. Coincidentally, the Industrial Revolution exploded then. The masters ditched the slave trade, but in place came bonded labourers and overworked factory workers to extract natural resources for invaders to usurp for a song.

Perhaps religion is the soothing elixir to soothe the hurt caused by the rapacious abuse of the natives. Whilst the left hand cheats them blind, the right hand gives the analgesic opiate to alleviate the pain. The colonialists diverted the natives from their traditional belief, which had served them well, to an alien one, which only served the perpetrators well. The host were made to look down on their own religion.

This extremely slow-moving movie narrates the tale of a Danish priest, Lucas, who is sent to the interiors of Iceland through a rugged sea and overland journey to spread the good news of Christianity to the Danish pioneers. Lucas also has a side interest. He enjoys taking outdoor photographs with his spanking-new device called a camera. 

It was the harsh journey, the near-death experience or the inability to grasp the new tongue Lucas could not fit in. He questions his whole purpose of being there. Due to the complex Icelandic language, he cannot mingle in the community's conversations. He queries God's purpose in sending him there. He cannot even perform his priestly duties of leading a prayer and listening to his parish's woes. If there were a God, would he make his servants endure such difficulties to spread His words?

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Location: Reykjavík, Iceland

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