This is a great film for those that like a slow drama with subtle mystery. Seems like a strange description, right? But it’s accurate. We experience the movie with our MC, Maya, whose ‘crazy’ grandmother just died. Maya goes to Iceland to go through her stuff, sell her place and come home. She talks on the phone to someone we later find out is her Mum, so why her Mum isn’t doing this- who knows. That’s pretty much all we ever learn of the Mum, which is that she’s available on the phone and she should at the end ‘Come home.’
No idea why that’s important or no cares to be had. Anyway.
The mystery stems not from why her grandmother died, but in the people that keep trying to break into the house while Maya’s there. I’ll admit, I was thinking that maybe her grandmother hid some gold from a train robbery in the basement or something exciting but…nope. They just want her to hurry and sell the house so they can build a hotel there. Bummer.
Anyway, despite the plot not being as interesting as I want and the pace being slow, I actually enjoyed this movie. The budget didn’t feel forced so the sound, cinematography, and acting all felt really good. So there wasn’t really a point that I wanted to STOP watching. It just didn’t leave a huge lasting impression after it was over. And…that’s okay. Not every movie has to!
https://letterboxd.com/susyq918/film/shadowtown/