If you knew that the end of the world was imminent, how would you spend your final days?
Personally, I’d probably spend them taking edibles, listening to my favorite music, and eating my weight in Girl Scout cookies. But Everything in the End, part of this year’s Portland International Film Festival lineup, provides a slightly more introspective answer, producing a film about the end of the world that’s heartfelt rather than bombastic.
In Everything in the End, we see the impending apocalypse through the eyes of Paulo, a young Portuguese man who’s traveled to a small Icelandic village during the Earth’s final days. We know Paulo is taking the trip in memory of his mother, who recently passed away and had always wanted to visit Iceland, but it’s unclear whether Paulo traveled to Iceland before or after learning that the world would soon end. We also don’t get a definite answer as to what’s prompting the apocalypse, though through vague references in dialogue, one could assume it has something to do with climate change or war-mongering politicians. “All the lies, and all the shit they did… I’m kind of glad it’s over,” Paulo tells one Icelandic woman he crosses paths with.”
