King of Devil's Island opened at Cinema Village in New York on November 18th and is opening at West End Cinema in Washington, D.C., on December 16th. Actor Stellan Skarsgård will be participating in a Q&A via Skype with the audience after Sunday's 2 PM screening at West End Cinema.
This true story of the infamous Bastøy Boys Home correctional facility in Norway, begins with the arrival of seventeen-year-old Erling, a rumored murderer. He immediately clashes with the island facility’s governor (Stellan Skarsgard), who believes manual labor, rigid discipline, and harsh punishment are the only methods that can turn the boys into honorable members of society.
Refusing to accept the constant abuse, Erling slowly rouses the rest of the boys out of their resigned existence, and encourages them to fight to lift up their spirits. When tragedy finally falls at the hand of the sadistic dorm master, Erling leads his comrades in a courageous and vicious rebellion that will bring them head to head with no less than the Norwegian Army.
"14 years ago, I met a man who was once himself one of the boys on the island. This encounter drove me to pursue the story further, and it feels good that time has finally come to do that story justice. Based on a true story, in a not too distant past, “King of Devil’s Island” is a timeless tale of injustice, repression and revolt. Moreover, it’s a story about the evil that grows in institutions sealed off from the rest of the world, and how powerful regimes may spiral out of control. This is a dark, and not widely known, chapter in Norwegian history. Military force used against young civilians, has the potential of an epic and thrilling European drama, with both the tough, physical action of the story and its intimate portraits of the group of boys. The legend of the Bastøy Island, and what happened there, has haunted me through the years. From the first encounter I felt this was a story that begged to be made into film, thus exposing these unwanted boys’ destinies," said Director Marius Holst.
Go to Cinema Village (NYC) or West End Cinema (D.C.) for screenings and tickets.