Sweden

The final part in Roy Andersson’s “trilogy about a being a human being”, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence is a droll but despairing inquiry into the human condition. Its thirty-nine distinct vignettes, each infused with recurring characters and repeated jokes, consolidate into a rumination on the absurdity of life and potential consequences of human dispassion. The eponymous pigeon, the least impressive exhibit in a dreary museum, appears in the opening scene, studied by a man whose wife is waiting resignedly in the corner. Like all the characters in the film, they are in stasis, trapped by their inexplicable attachments, habits and routines, mere artifacts in the wunderkammer that is life.

Sanctuary opens on a rural home in the Swedish countryside, the serenity of which is soon interrupted by the arrival of police. The child occupant Hella (Clara Christiansson), is questioned as to the location of her father, wanted on suspicion of murder. After they leave, the wanted man (Jakob Cedergren) returns, and the pair flee into large woodlands.

Bruno Dumont is joining the ranks of acclaimed filmmakers trading in the big screen for the home screen.  Set to develop a police drama for French network ARTE, this will be his first foray into television. Dumont’s work, which includes L’humanité (1999) and Hors Satan (2011), has long been controversial and his filmmaking practises have …

She Monkeys Directed by Lisa Aschan Written by Lisa Aschan and Josefine Adolfsson Sweden, 2011 Oscar Levant once said, “There’s a fine line between genius and insanity”. Perhaps Levant was a genius (or perhaps he was insane), but the truth within his aphorism is both pithy and well documented. In cinema, the most notable auteurs …

Kiss Me Written and directed by Alexandra-Therese Keining Sweden, 2011 Like in Mulholland Drive, the first intimate encounter between the two female leads is delicately depicted. Perfuse with undeniable eroticism and composed with such seductive elegance, this moment is mediated on absolute and instinctive passion. Framed amongst the forbidden circumstances of their carnal convergence, the …

The Crown Jewels Directed by Ella Lemhagen Written by Ella Lemhagen and Carina Dahl Sweden, 2011 Fragancia (Alicia Vikander) walks into her interrogation. As she sits in silence, a detective inquires, “Tell me what happened. You went up to Mr. Persson’s house at midnight to see Richard Persson. Why?” Fragancia answers, “If I’m going to …

Simon and the Oaks Directed by Lisa Ohlin Written by Lisa Ohlin and Marnie Blok Sweden, 2011 During the late 1930’s and 1940’s, young Simon Larsson (Jonatan S. Washer) and his family live in the idyllic Swedish countryside. There, he and his father (Stefan Gödicke) are at constant odds, with Simon wanting to go to …

Big Boys Gone Bananas! Directed by Fredrik Gertten Sweden, 2011 Not so long ago in a country not so far, far away… A Swedish journalist publishes a fiery polemic against a large, multi-national corporation. In response, said corporation successfully alleges fraud, effectively burying his work and blacklisting him from various media and journalistic syndications. To …

Play Written by Ruben Östlund and Erik Hemmendorff Directed by Ruben Östlund Sweden/Denmark/Finland, 2011 Play is a frequently harrowing and thoughtful film about manipulation, bullying, identity, race and customs. Primarily rooted in uncomfortable ambiguity, it is based on a series of real cases of bullying and robbery that occurred in Gothenburg, Sweden in recent years. …