Category Archives: Nordic Cinema

The story of a divorce, from a male perspective: “Valkoinen kaupunki” [2006 Finland]

Writer-director Aku Louhimies’ melodrama “Valkoinen kaupunki” [Eng. Title: Frozen City] looks at the break-up of a marriage and its aftermath from a viewpoint rarely given airtime, either in law or practice – the husband’s. The film – a depressingly … Continue reading

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Forbidden Love: “Syskonbädd 1782” [1966 Sweden]

Vilgot Sjöman was no stranger to controversy even before his ground-breaking films “I am Curious [Blue, and Yellow]”. Made a year earlier, “Syskonbädd 1782” [Eng. Title: My Sister My Love] – a costume melodrama set in the seventeenth century … Continue reading

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In pursuit of happiness: “White Night Wedding” [2008 Iceland]

Acclaimed director Baltasar Kormákur’s 2008 bright comedy-drama “Brúðguminn” [Eng. Title: White Night Wedding] is set in the charming albeit remote island of Flatey, in northern Iceland.
The film starts with Jon (Hilmir Snær Guðnason), a middle-aged professor of literature, rehearsing … Continue reading

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Romanticizing social politics: “Ådalen 31” [1969 Sweden]

Bo Widerberg’s social drama “Ådalen 31” [Eng. Title: Adalen Riots] concerns itself with a working class family during a tragic 1931 strike in the industrial town of Ådalen. The strike spread nationwide and was a turning point in Swedish … Continue reading

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An unlikely friendship: “Spies & Glistrup” [2013 Denmark]

Cristoffer Boe (of Reconstruction fame) originally wanted to dramatise the life of late airline tycoon Simon Spies, but upon discovering the extraordinary friendship he also had with lawyer-turned-politician Mogens Glistrup, Boe decided to make a film about their relationship … Continue reading

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