This page lists movies produced in Scandinavia and movies made by Scandinavian directors, as well as movies set in Scandinavia.
Autumn Sonata = Höstsonaten
PN1997 .A988 1999 DVD
92 minutes; released 1978.
After having neglected her children for many years, a mother
attempts a reconciliation with her oldest daughter through a night of
painful revelation. Audio-track in Swedish with optional English
subtitles. Directed by Ingmar Bergman.
Babette's Feast = Babettes gæstebud
PN1997 .B193 2001 DVD
113 minutes; released 1987.
In nineteenth-century Denmark, the daughters of a devout
clergyman struggle between piety and passion when their father dies and a
French gourmet cook comes to town. Audio track in English, French,
Danish, or Spanish. Based on the novel by Karen Blixen. Directed by
Gabriel Axel.
Breaking the Waves
PN1995.9 .L6B73 2000 DVD
152 minutes; released 1996.
When an accident on an offshore oil rig sends a man home
paralyzed, his young Scottish wife submits to his wish that she take on
other lovers, convinced that this will aid in his recovery. Starring
Emily Watson and Stellan Skarsgrd. Directed by Lars von Trier.
The Cider House Rules
PS3559 .R8 C52 2000 DVD
125 minutes; released 1999.
A compassionate young man, raised in an orphanage and trained to
be a doctor there, decides to leave to see the world. Based on the
novel by John Irving. Starring Tobey Maguire, Charlize Theron and
Michael Caine. Directed by Lasse Hallstrm.
Cries and Whispers = Viskningar och rop
PN1997 .C75 2001 DVD
91 minutes; released 1972.
The fractured relationships of three sisters, one of whom is
dying of cancer. Audio-track in Swedish with optional English
subtitles. Directed by Ingmar Bergman.
Dancer In The Dark
PN1997 .D228 2001 DVD
141 minutes; released 2000.
A single mother, losing her eyesight due to a hereditary
disease, is determined to protect her son from this fate by saving money
for an operation. Starring Bjrk and Catherine Deneuve. Directed by Lars
von Trier.
Day of Wrath = Vredens Dag
PN1997 .V74 2001 DVD
97 minutes; released 1943.
The wife of a minister in a small 17th-century Danish village
falls in love with her step-son. Audio-track in Danish, with optional
English subtitles. Directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer.
The Element of Crime
PN1997 .F673 2000 DVD
104 minutes; released 1984.
An exiled ex-cop returns to his old beat to catch a serial
killer preying on young girls. Set in Germany and shot in sepia tones
with brilliant blue flashes, Lars Von Trier boldly reinvents the
expressionist style, combining dark mystery and operatic sweep to yield a
celluloid nightmare.
Fanny and Alexander
PN1997 .F366 2004 DVD
188 minutes; released 1982.
Told through the eyes of Alexander and his sister Fanny, we see
the exuberant and colorful Ekdahl household in a Swedish town early in
the twentieth century, and witness their delights and conflicts.
Directed by Ingmar Bergman. In Swedish with optional English subtitles.
A Film Trilogy
PN1997 .F556 2003 DVD
410 minutes (4 discs); released 1961-1965.
This four disc set features Swedish director Ingmar Bergman's work on three of
his most powerful films presented as a trilogy: Through a Glass Darkly, Winter
Light, and The Silence. The last disc, Ingmar Bergman Makes
a Movie, is a documentary film offering views on movie making, as well as
conversations with thge director. In Swedish with optional English subtitles.
Five Obstructions
PN1997.2 F58 2004 DVD
90 minutes; released 2004.
Jorgen Leth and Lars von Trier remake Leth's 1967 short film The Perfect Human five times using five
different plot devices. English, Danish, French, Spanish with English subtitles.
Good Evening Mr. Wallenberg = God afton, Herr Wallenberg
DS135 .H9 G6 1990z DVD
115 minutes; released 1990.
The story of Swedish businessman Raoul Wallenberg who helped
Hungarian Jews obtain Swedish passports to escape the Holocaust.
Audio-track in Swedish, German and Hungarian, with English subtitles.
Starring Stellan Skarsgrd. Directed by Kjell Grede.
I Am Curious = Jag Är Nyfiken
PN1997 .J341 2003 DVD
228 minutes (2 discs); released 1967.
Two films about Lena, a young woman on her personal quest to
understand the social and political conditions in 1960's Sweden, as well
as the exploration of her own sexual identity. In Swedish with optional
English subtitles.
Insomnia
PN1997 .I576 1999 DVD
97 minutes; released 1997.
A disgraced Swedish detective travels to Northern Norway to
solve a brutal murder. But after making a key error in his
investigation, the detective finds himself implicated in the crime he
was sent to solve. Audio-track in Norwegian and Swedish with optional
English subtitles. Starring Stellan Skarsgrd. Directed by Erik
Skjoldbjrg.
Italian for Beginners
PN1997 .I83 2000 DVD
97 minutes; released 2000.
In this romantic comedy, seven strangers tired of Danish
suburbia sign up for an Italian class and join together on a quest to
Italy. Directed by Lone Scherfig.
The Magic Flute
M1500 .M69 Z3183 2000 DVD
135 minutes; released 1975.
Ingmar Bergman's version of the opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
about a young man who rescues a beautiful princess from the clutches of
parental evil. Audio-track in Swedish, with optional English
subtitles.
Ordet
PN1997 .O73 2001 DVD
126 minutes; released 1955.
A father and his three sons have different religious
experiences.
Audio-track in Danish with English subtitles (optional on DVD).
Based on the play by Kaj Munk. Directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer.
Persona
PN1997 .P464 1992 VHS
468 minutes (3 discs); released 1966.
The relationship between an actress who has lost her voice and
the nurse who takes care of her. Audio-track in Swedish with English
subtitles. Directed by Ingmar Bergman.
Scenes From a Marriage = Scener ur ett Äktenskap
PN1997 .S346 2004 DVD
96 minutes; released 1973.
Marianne and Johan always seemed to be the perfect couple. When Johan suddenly
leaves Marianne for another woman, they are forced to confront the disintegration
of their marriage. Chronicles ten years of turmoil and love that bind the couple.
Audio-track
in Swedish with optional English subtitles. Directed by Ingmar Bergman.
The Seventh Seal = Det Sjunde inseglit
PN1997 .S5683 1998 DVD
96 minutes; released 1957.
A knight returning home from the Crusades encounters Death, who
agrees to a chess game. In the balance hang the lives of the knight and a
group of traveling players. Audio-track in Swedish with English
subtitles. Directed by Ingmar Bergman.
Shipping News
PS3566 .R697 S42 2002 DVD
111 minutes; released 2001.
A journalist moves with his daughter from a New York town to a
small fishing
village in Newfoundland. Audio-track in English or French. Based
on the novel by E. Annie Proulx. Starring Kevin Spacey, Cate Blanchett,
Julianne Moore and Judi Dench. Directed by Lasse Hallstrm.
Smiles of a Summer Night = Sommarnattens leende
PN1997 .S666 2004 DVD
108 minutes; released 1955.
A sharp satire about eight Swedish aristocrats who become
romantically and comically intertwined over a single weekend. In Swedish
with optional English subtitles.
Vampyr
PR4879 .L7 I52 1991 DVD
72 minutes; released 1932.
A young man attempts to find and kill a vampire that has assumed
the form of an old woman. In German with English subtitles. Based on
the stories by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu. Directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer.
The Virgin Spring
GR225 .J85 2006 DVD
88 minutes; released 1960.
Set in beautiful 14th century Sweden, a father seeks revenge
after his daughter, a young virgin, is brutally raped and murdered after
her half sister has invoked a pagan curse. In Swedish with English
subtitles.
Wild Strawberries = Smultronstället
PN1997 .S583 2002 DVD
91 minutes; released 1957.
A retired professor who lives alone with his housekeeper
reminisces about his failures and disappointments in personal
relationships. Audio track in Swedish with optional English subtitles.
Directed by Ingmar Bergman.
Also of Interest
Carl Th. Dreyer: My Metier
PN1998.3 .D74 C35 2001 DVD
94 minutes; released 1995.
Using interviews, historical writings, and rare archival footage, this documentary sketches a portrait of one of cinema's greatest directors and provides and in-depth study of his life and work. Narrated in English; interviews in
Danish and French with optional English subtitles. Directed by Torben Skjdt Jensen.
