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Fifty years old, single and independent, Halla seems a woman like any other, but behind her daily routine she hides a secret life: armed to the teeth, she carries out reckless acts of sabotage of power lines to damage the multinationals that are devastating her land, beautiful Iceland. While planning her most audacious undertaking, however, Halla receives a letter that is destined to change her existence. Already director of the acclaimed Stories of Of Horses and Men, Benedikt Erlingsson strikes at the heart with a sweeping, offbeat comedy, a memorable portrait of women and a tribute to Iceland's hauntingly beautiful landscape.
There is a strong connection between my two films, Of Horses and Men and Woman at War. It is something that I only really became aware of after I finished the latter, namely the fundamental idea that the ‘rights of Nature’ should in fact be considered on the same level as ‘human rights’. Nature's rights should be strongly protected in every constitution and defended by international laws. We must all understand that unspoilt nature has an intrinsic right to exist, a necessity that goes beyond the needs of man and our economic system. Sometimes, however, it happens that the state itself, which in democratic countries is taken for granted to be an instrument created by the people for the people, can easily be manipulated by special interests against the common good. When we look at the great challenges we face on environmental issues, this becomes perfectly clear to us. In Woman at War this theme becomes fertile ground for a comedy, but in reality, in some countries, it is rather the subject for a tragedy. I would like to mention two women whom I consider heroines: Berta Cáceres in Honduras and Yolanda Maturana in Colombia. Both environmental activists, they were murdered by those who had big interests in the lands they were trying to defend.







