The Love That Remains

An intimate and at times surreal dramedy from the director of Godland (MIFF 2022) about an unconventional family navigating separation. Once a loving couple, industrial herring trawler worker Magnus and his wife, Anna, split up. Now transitioning into co-parenting their three children while living apart, Magnus has trouble letting go. Anna, meanwhile, is juggling Magnus’s visits – both planned and unannounced – with her ambition to be taken seriously as an artist. Over the course of a year, amid both the everyday and moments of beauty found in their quiet life in the Icelandic countryside, the now-divided family reckon with their new normal. Writer, director and cinematographer Hlynur Pálmason, shooting on 35mm, captures the undercurrent of absurdity that can emerge from the struggle to make sense of losing what we once had. While not autobiographical, The Love That Remains draws from elements of the filmmaker’s life: Pálmason’s own offspring play the couple’s children; the film makes use of his artwork, local landscapes and family pastimes; and even his Icelandic sheepdog, Panda, contributes an utterly delightful, Cannes Palm Dog–awarded supporting role. “Both leads are excellent, conveying the weary sadness of separation, underscored by enduring affections, and the naturalness of the three children adds immeasurably to the drama’s intimacy … There’s much to admire in Pálmason’s unconventional approach.” – The Hollywood Reporter