Rams Film Difficulty Ranking: 3
Brothers. If you have one you’ll appreciate the sibling rivalry in this Icelandic farmer dry comedy film. Ram’s has got two that hate each other. It’s all because they are both trying to be the best at breeding rams in a very unpopulated valley. There’s only room for one of them. But when serpie (a livestock disease) threatens both their herds, can they come together to keep their heritage alive?
From: Iceland, Europe
Watch: Trailer, Rent on Amazon, Buy on Amazon
Next: Toni Erdmann, The Square, The Orator
Why Watch Rams?
- Experience life as a livestock farmer in rural Iceland
- For a BIG sibling rivalry
- Meet some quietly and strangely amusing characters
- Fight to keep tradition alive
The Breakdown
Rams starts with one shaggy old man tending to his flock of sheep. He proudly speaks to one of his prized rams before he enters him into a local competition for best ram. However, whilst he wins 2nd place in the contest, his happiness is short lived, as his hated brother wins first place with another ram from the same breed.
Their rivalry is never explained but it is disguised in their similar but different on-screen presence. Similar, because they look identical: they both have big shaggy beards and wear similar patterned wooden jumpers. Different, because one is quiet, has a routine, and generally keeps to himself, whereas the other is boisterous, loud, and prone to getting very drunk. They’re a prototypical set of brothers.
However, whilst they both hate seeing the other succeed, they have to club together to protect the only thing they both love: their unique breed of rams. It’s their heritage and the only thing they live for.
RaMs and Humans
Rams are shaggy, woolly, and stubborn. These brothers are shaggy, woolly, and stubborn. It’s like the director intentionally found two people that might have been sheep in their past lives to play the roles.
Furthermore, the brothers are never seen with partners – we presume they don’t have any and never had – and they hardly ever talk to any other characters in the film. They talk more to their sheep then to other humans in the film. And when they talk to their sheep, they talk to them softly, encouragingly, as if they were a favourite child or good friend. This is particularly obvious in the scene in which Gummi encourages one of his rams to mate.
What to Watch Next
If dry, quirky humour is your thing, you should also check out:
Or if you want to see more films with families trying to keep tradition alive, check out Whale Rider from New Zealand and The Orator from Samoa.
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