While in 1913, the last year before the War, the American share in Sweden was only about 4%, in 1919, the first year after the war, it was 80%.[7]. The outstanding acting and gorgeous cinematography featured in The Hunt places it firmly within this list. As it turns out there is more to Scandinavian cinema than just Ingmar Bergman and bleak, wintry black and white films which contemplate the human condition, religion and death. Facing the exponential growth of US films and its dominance domestically and internationally, Swedish film production - as discussed by Jan Olsson, “operated with a Nordic […] home base” [8] - felt compelled to adapt its market strategies to the new context to regain relevance. ), Ägget är löst, The Adventures of Picasso (Picassos äventyr), SOPOR and The Simple-Minded Murder (Den enfaldige mördaren). When the film was eventually released, the publicity gained from the legal fight and the revolutionary graphic content drew huge crowds, making the film the most successful Swedish film export ever, and the most successful foreign film in the US up to this point. 1.3K likes. By the end of the 1920s, all major US exhibitors had offices in Sweden.[11]. Other young Swedish filmmakers that have seen major success in recent years include Lebanon-born director Josef Fares, with the comedies Jalla! Higson, Andrew, and Richard Maltby. Though set in 1980’s Sweden, anyone can relate to the film’s honest and accurate portrayal of the rebellion and angst of being teenager. Also starting his career working with Bergman, Vilgot Sjöman debuted in 1962 with The Mistress (Älskarinnan), but attracted far wider attention in Sweden when his film 491 was originally banned by the Swedish censors due to its explicit sexual content. Bjork, Ulf Jonas. Expertly directed by Danish auteur Thomas Vinterberg of The Celebration fame, this film features Scandinavian regulars Mads Mikkelsen and Thomas Bo Larsen. In the mid-twenties both of these directors (Sjöström and Stiller) and Garbo moved to the United States to work for MGM, bringing Swedish influence to Hollywood. Scandinavia’s film history is unfortunately overlooked. After that Troell went to Hollywood, where he directed Zandy's Bride, starring Gene Hackman, and Hurricane. Cinema had to perform the task of psychological defence during the war. Some provincial comedies emerged, created for the local market. Outrageous, raucous, shocking. The current landscape of Nordic cinema is very exciting. Love him or loath him, von Trier certainly has a distinct style, largely informed by the Dogme 95, a creative movement led by von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg. He also directed The Ox (Oxen) (1991), nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1992. As it turns out there is more to Scandinavian cinema than just Ingmar Bergman and bleak, wintry black and white films which contemplate the human condition, religion and death. He won the award again in 1983, for the early twentieth-century family drama Fanny and Alexander (Fanny och Alexander). A richly drawn out and skilfully executed Scandi-thriller. The current agreement runs from 1 January 2006, until 31 December 2010. He returned to Sweden to make The Flight of the Eagle (Ingenjör Andrées luftfärd), a film about the Swedish explorer Andrée's disastrous 1897 polar expedition. In 2009, the feature films The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (Män som hatar kvinnor), The Girl Who Played with Fire (Flickan som lekte med elden) and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest (Luftslottet som sprängdes) became international hits with the first film making more than $100 million worldwide. The Emigrants was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Picture. ’Film Europe’ and ’Film America’: An Introduction.” In ”Film Europe” and ”Film America”: Cinema, Commerce and Cultural Exchange, 1920–1939, edited by Andrew Higson and Richard Maltby. While there are many great films not listed below, the intent of this list is to expose readers to a wide variety of contemporary Scandinavian films. The Swedish Film Institute was founded in 1963 to support and develop the Swedish film industry. The 2002 Lilya 4-ever (Lilja 4-ever) is a dark, tragic story about trafficking in human beings, and the 2004 A Hole in My Heart (Ett hål i mitt hjärta) deals with an amateur porn movie recording, causing some controversy due to its shocking and disturbing footage. Historical Journal of Film, Radio & Television, 01439685, Jun1995, Vol. Mikkelsen plays Lucas, a kindergarten teacher in rural Denmark. Many attribute the distinct quality of Scandinavian films to the socioeconomic context in which these films are created. Jan Troell started his career as Widerberg's director of photography, but could soon debut with his own film Here's Your Life (Här har du ditt liv). Scandinavian cinema, Sofia, Bulgaria. Both directors later returned to Sweden, but Stiller died soon after his return while Sjöström returned to theatre work for most of the remainder of his career. In: Sedgwick, John and Pokorny, Michael, (eds.) When the treatment by the administration becomes intolerable, the boys revolt. My Life as a Dog, released in Sweden in 1985, was nominated for two 1987 Academy Awards, for directing and for adapted screenplay. Based off of a television show with the same title, Klown is a refreshing take on the classic travel comedy. During the late 1990s early 2000s several young filmmakers started exploring genre-films which had earlier been almost non-existent, Mikael Håfström's slasher film Strandvaskaren, Anders Banke's vampire comedy Frostbite which was the first Swedish vampire film, Anders Jacobsson's satire Evil Ed and Måns Mårlind's and Björn Stein's fantasy-thriller Storm. E-mail Citation » Early English-language outline of Scandinavian cinema. Ingmar Bergman also won four Golden Globe Awards for Best Foreign Language Film. From the Dogme filmmakers to lighthearted documentarians, Scandinavian filmmakers have recently created wonderful, distinct films. Despite a seemingly simple plot, King of Devil’s Island contains a few surprising moments. The film can also be read as a subtle, clever critique of Norway, and the way it deals with societal problems such as the trolls. [6] The neutrality of Sweden could have been translated in the fortification of its film industry, which to some extent was true since its production grew relatively during this period - one of the explanations probably is still its predominance in Germany -, but its market share declined severely. Set in Stockholm in 1982, it focuses on three outcast girls who decide to start a punk rock band. Before he was known simply as cinema’s leading pervert with a string of art house torture porn flicks, Lars Von Trier made this hypnotic masterpiece. All the trolls look like they have stepped out of a book of menacing fairy tales. This film may remind viewers of films such as Lord of the Flies in that it addresses the power dynamics of male relationships. Taste of Cinema 2019. The region is responsible for many of the most exciting and thoughtful contemporary films. The attempts of constructing a National Cinema able to be also universal was a response to the Hollywood dominance, which, in the end, is the consequence of the consolidation of the United States economic supremacy - after all, European films were not able to develop the same capacity of escalation in production and exhibition. At a rate of, currently, 20 films a year the Swedish film industry is on par with other comparable North European countries. Viewers watching Klown for the first time will marvel at the shocking moralities of Frank and Casper. [13] In this particular tale, a bullied boy falls in love with a vampire girl who has just moved in next door. From the Dogme filmmakers to lighthearted documentarians, Scandinavian filmmakers have recently created wonderful, distinct films. Web Hosting by (mt). Furthermore, the Institute organises the annual Guldbagge Awards. London: Tantivy on behalf of “Scandinavian Films,” 1992. Lukas Moodysson's first feature-length film, Show Me Love (English language name for the controversial Swedish original title, Fucking Åmål) was a huge success in Sweden. Early buzz from TIFF has been very positive. Jalla! The Hunt features many of Scandinavia’s greatest talents. The famous and influential Swedish filmmaker, Ingmar Bergman, rose to prominence in the fifties. Flickan i frack (Girl in Tails, Karin Swanström, 1926), for example, represents the convergence of these different perspectives when portrays an urban Stockholm contrasting with the countryside and the desire of the protagonist to become an independent woman but also to be recognized by the Swedish traditionalism, expressed by the character interpreted by Karin Swanström. Through the Swedish Film Agreement, between the Swedish state and the film and media industry, the Government of Sweden, the TV companies which are party to the agreement, and Sweden's cinema owners jointly fund the Film Institute and thus, indirectly, Swedish filmmaking. Inspired by the legacy of masters such as Ingmar Bergman and Lasse Halstromm, Scandinavian filmmakers create works that distinctly reflect the influences from these auteurs. In the 1960s, Bergman won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film for two consecutive years, with The Virgin Spring (Jungfrukällan) in 1960 and Through a Glass Darkly (Såsom i en spegel) in 1961. `The backbone of our business': American films in Sweden, 1910-50. Roy Andersson had a breakthrough with his first feature-length film, A Swedish Love Story in 1969, and was awarded four prizes at the International Film Festival in Berlin the same year. Copyright © 2000 - 2020 Scene360. ISSN 20427891, ONLINE ISSN 20427905 Journal of Scandinavian Cinema is a double-blind peer-reviewed scholarly journal devoted to excellent research and stimulating discussion focusing on the cinemas of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, both within their national and Nordic contexts, and as transnational cinemas in a globalized world. The departure left a vacuum in Swedish cinema, which subsequently went into a financial crisis. In the comedy genre Lasse Åberg has directed and also starred in some successful films that, although not praised by film critics, were box-office successes and have received cult status. But that might be about to change with his upcoming release “We are the Best!” (2013). Whether they’re shooting indies in their home countries or big budget dramas in the US or UK, they are making their mark. It supports Swedish filmmakings and allocates grants for production, distribution and public showing of Swedish films in Sweden. If you go down to the woods today…etc. It is a brutal and engrossing depiction of Scandinavia’s underground drug war. Despite proclaiming his innocence, Lucas’ friends and family turn on him, all while he attempts to gain custody of his son. Just stunning. Another Swedish postwar filmmaker of note is Bo Widerberg. The latest from Scandinavian film hero Lukas Moodysson, We Are the Best! Like many of von Trier’s other films, Antichrist is often accused of being intentionally provocative, designed to punish the audience. The film lost to The Sting, and oddly enough, it was not nominated in the Foreign Language Film category. “After the Wedding” is one of the best. Fans of films such as District 9 as well as Scandinavian humor will delight in Troll Hunter’s unique interpretation of the fantasy and thriller genres.