Directed by: Jan Troell
Staring: Maria Heiskanen, Mikael Persbrandt & Jesper Christensen
Set in Malmo, Sweden at the beginning of the 20th Century, this is an intelligent and optimistic film with a great central performance from Maria Heiskanen as Maria, a long suffering victim of a drunken, abusive working-class husband.
Maria turns to photography and in developing a friendship with a local portrait photographer she sparks her creativity and possibly more. It is the story of a meagre life in a deeply divided and deferential society. We see the local impact of World War 1, the coming of electricity and the cinema.
“A masterpiece with a towering central performance….There are wonderful moments in this, a beautiful, tender, truthful film…. Acting of the highest order.” Philip French in the Observer.