Director Saevar Gudmundsson had full access to the team that put Icelandic football, known largely in the U.S. as soccer, on the map in 2016 when the team reached its first major tournament, and was the smallest nation to do so, the UEFA Euro 2016 and advanced to the tournament's quarterfinals where it was knocked out 5-2 by France. 

For the small nation of about 330,000 people, the story of their football team is the equivalent of the U.S.'s Miracle on Ice, though Inside a Volcano: The Rise of Icelandic Football only occasionally captures the true spirit of that miracle that captivated the nation of Iceland and football fans globally. 

The film screens on Friday, July 14th at 1pm in IMA's Toby and on Saturday, July 22nd at 1:15pm also in the Toby. It's a film that's destined to please Indy's growing numbers of football fans thanks to the increasingly popular Indy Eleven. Inside a Volcano is captivating enough that one practically forgets that the majority of film is in the Icelandic language, with English subtitles, and simply surrenders to its spirit. 

Inside a Volcano captured an Edda Award, the Icelandic Oscar equivalent, for best documentary feature and Gudmundsson does a nice job of weaving in both past and present for these athletes who have dedicated a good majority of their entire lives to a sport that is only now truly soaring in its presence in Iceland. 

Inside a Volcano is occasionally hindered by a lack of cohesiveness and lensing that is so loose and freestyle that the moments in the film that truly should soar really don't. While there's an inherent inspiration to be found in the film, one gets the feeling that this nearly 90-minute documentary only begins to hint at the electricity and enthusiasm that defined this truly miraculous year. 

© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic