
A Lot of Sorrow
Music
Overview
Icelandic artist and musician Ragnar Kjartansson’s often intensely durational performance-based works manifest a rare synthesis of pathos and humor. A Lot of Sorrow is both a music video and an extended concert film, in which Brooklyn-based band the National performs its three-and-a-half minute ballad “Sorrow” on repeat for six hours. The band’s music and lyrics frequently conjure notions of romantic suffering and melancholy—themes common to Kjartansson’s emotive, theatrical work. As the hours pass and fatigue sets in, the musicians subtly alter their song; the original track is always recognizable but is also shown to be elastic and expressive rather than rigid. Kjartansson is sometimes visible in the role of roadie, offering water and food to the performers throughout the concert. Multiple camera angles grant the viewer access to both the perspective of the musicians and that of the audience, as the band and the crowd feed off each other’s energy with every repetition.
Top Cast


Matt Berninger
Matt Berninger
Self
Matt Berninger
Self


Aaron Dessner
Aaron Dessner
Self
Aaron Dessner
Self


Bryce Dessner
Bryce Dessner
Self
Bryce Dessner
Self


Bryan Devendorf
Bryan Devendorf
Self
Bryan Devendorf
Self


Scott Devendorf
Scott Devendorf
Self
Scott Devendorf
Self
Ragnar Kjartansson
Ragnar Kjartansson
Self
Ragnar Kjartansson
Self
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