Amma Hófí (Grandma Hofi) is an Icelandic Christmas heist movie directed by Gunnar B. Gudmundsson that screened at the Scandinavian Film Festival. Hofi (Edda Björgvinsdóttir) and Petur (Þórhallur Sigurðsson) are residents in an underfunded retirement village come aged care facility, where they are forced to share a room due to lack of space. They live under the thumb of a paternalistic manager, who sets ever more restrictive rules, and his crooked son, who steals their food, belongings and medications.
While Hofi and Petur become best friends, Hofi dreams of escaping the home to buy her own one bedroom apartment in the town. The bank informs her that her life savings disappeared in the ‘Global Financial Crisis’ of 2008 during which Icelandic banks lost most of the countries wealth making corrupt deals. Nowadays however, the banks are booming, while further cuts to retirement housing are being announced. Hofi rightly feels that the money is hers to take back.
The unlikely bank robbers don Santa costumes to pull of a daring heist. The bumbling police never suspect the pair due to an ageist belief that older people don’t rob banks. The police, the bank managers, and the local thugs are constantly outwitted by the wily seniors. The story mirrors the classic Christmas movie Home Alone, with the robbers being the good guys, and the child being the older people.
The comically bad conditions in retirement housing are very relatable, although the twist at the end doesn’t translate to the Australian situation. While the movie challenges ageism, it could have gone further in developing the romantic attraction between the main characters. Its an all round fun and charming Christmas movie with a great message.