The Faroe Islands are a remote archipelago in the northern Atlantic Ocean, lying somewhere between Scotland, Norway & Iceland. With a population of just over 56,00, the islands draw in adventurous tourists seeking out their largely untouched natural beauty.
But in the 19th Century, the only reason anyone visited was because it’s a conveniently located stopping point for trade or rest during long journeys across the sea.
How about we take this to the next level?
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The intriguing queer horror No Rest For The Wicked transports audiences to the Faroe Islands in 1862. For strapping young fisherman Baldur (model Egor Venned, making his acting debut), the islands are all he’s ever known, content to stay home and care for his widowed mother Ásla (Sofia Nolsøe Mikkelsen). It’s only when the occasional traveler makes port in their seaside village that he’s reminded there’s a much bigger world out there.
That goes especially for the arrival of Helge (Game Of Thrones‘ Pilou Asbæk), a handsome Danish whaler a bit older that Baldur. In need of a place to stay, a smitten Ásla offers the spare room in their humble home, but she’s not the one he has eyes for.
The two men don’t speak the same language, but they don’t necessarily need words to communicate their feelings for one another. With time, they begin a passionate affair, which must be kept a secret in this small, conservative village, especially from Baldur’s devout mother.
However, Helge can’t stay forever. And no matter how badly Baldur wants to sail off with his lover, to see the world beyond his small, provincial existence, he feels duty-bound to his mother and his community.
Then, during one fateful storm, tragedy strikes and…. Well, we’ll pause to offer up a big, hearty *spoiler warning* because this movie’s about to throw some wild twists you’re way which are all technically part of the plot. So if you’d prefer to go in cold and want to stop right here, we respect that!
It’s at this point that No Rest For The Wicked shifts tones and genres entirely, from rugged period piece romance to Gothic folk horror. Though presumably lost at sea, Helge returns to the island as something of an undead vampire, visiting Baldur at night not just for blood, but to continue on their love affair.
And if these small-minded locals didn’t take too kindly to this outsider spending a lot of intimate time with Baldur, imagine how they’ll react when they find out he’s a vampire!
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From writer-director Kasper Kalle, No Rest For The Wicked is a potent tale of queer love & longing, one that brings what could otherwise be subtext to the surface. In fact, it’s based on an 1884 short story called Manor by German author Karl Heinrich Ulrichs, who was as out as one could be at the time, actively campaigning for sexual reform and coining some of history’s earliest words for queerness.
Manor similarly concerns itself with two young men on the Faroe Island who establish an intimate bond, only for one of them to die at sea, returning from the grave each night to visit his lover. Ulrichs uses the popular vampirism myth to explore homosexuality—and society’s adverse reaction to it—in a way that was rather direct and quite radical for his time, depicting queer love as something that was almost supernatural
In adapting the story for modern audiences while maintaining the setting of the original, Kalle is able to push those themes even further, and make the connection between Baldur and Helge even more explicit. Judging from early reviews, his film doesn’t skimp on sexiness either, giving audiences the big-screen fang-banging we’ve been craving!
No Rest For The Wicked just had its world premiere at Montreal’s genre-friendly Fantasia Festival, which likens the film to “Céline Sciamma’s breathtaking Portrait Of A Lady On Fire, only if it were a queer Danish vampire film with folk-horror flavors and a definite Gothic undertone.” Say no more—we’re sold!
There’s one more Fantasia Fest screening set for Saturday, July 25, and then the film’s slated for theatrical release in Denmark on September 3. There’s no word yet on when it might come stateside, so let’s hope all the positive word-of-mouth makes that happen sooner than later.
In the meantime, check out the first official trailer for No Rest For The Wicked below:
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