Jar City (2006)

Jar City is something like The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo meets CSI in Iceland. Three police detectives are chasing down a cold case that has suddenly come to light after the murder of a retired police officer (who, it turns out, was involved in an internal affairs investigation that was covered up 20 years ago). Somehow the new murder is connected to the death of a little girl and the disappearance and possible murder of a second police officer. We witness the exhumation of the little girl's skeleton from her grave as well as a decayed adult corpse (crawling with rats) from a marsh, which is a very messy scene. The morgue pathologist chomps on his lunch in between prodding and splaying human remains and the lead detective rips apart his Icelandic fast food meal: a baked sheep's head. The lead detective's personal life is messy too, as he rescues his grown daughter from serious trouble more than once. The name Jar City comes from a secure location where the brains of dozens of past murder victims are kept preserved as evidence. The cinematography is a bit washed out or harshly lit but is at times hypnotic as it reveals another panoramic vista of Iceland (esp. when combined with the aural wall created by its choral soundtrack). Available a la carte on Amazon but no longer listed on Netflix. Enjoy (with a snack?)! 4.5 stars. (6-13-2011, posted 7-2-2016)