Jörn Donner Movies

In this antic comedy, Errki and Taisto are Finnish businessmen who are in trouble with the tax authorities. Consequently, they have run away with some of the loot they failed to properly report, to the supposed paradise of Florida, in the U.S. They have plenty of money, but soon tire of boozing and sitting in the sun, so they each take under-the-counter jobs to stave off boredom. Meanwhile, Errki's pregnant wife is not overjoyed by the circumstances she finds there. After Errki returns from an adventure which has him trucking live lobsters (and a cache of heroin) up north, and being nearly caught by the police, he discovers that his wife has returned to Finland in order to have their baby there. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In a fast-paced but unemotional tale of woe with an abrupt closure, a 60-year-old businessman faces first one crisis and then another, with no obvious escape hatch in sight. Gabriel Berggren (Erland Josephson) has rivals in the business world, given that he is an executive in a large company. At home, his marriage has hit the skids, and that does nothing to improve his attitude at work -- which distinctly deteriorates when the CEO dies while at Berggren's desk. That tragedy invites some nasty competition for the dead man's position, and all this pressure is not really made much easier when a charming young woman (Charlotta Larsson) starts working in the office. Berggren's troubles come to a head when he falls ill at the wedding party of one of his rivals -- and unless he is careful, he may be the next to join the CEO.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Ingmar Bergman's After the Rehearsal stars Erland Josephson as a theater director named Henrik Volger. He is in the midst of mounting a production of a Strindberg play when he is visited by Anna Egerman (Lena Olin), an actress whom he has cast in the play. Volger was involved with Anna's mother, Rakel (Ingrid Thulin), an alcoholic has-been actress who once was Volger's lover. Rakel intrudes upon their conversation, and the two women confront Henrik about how he has lived his life. This 72-minute production originally aired on Swedish television before receiving theatrical distribution. The cinematographer on the film is Bergman's longtime collaborator Sven Nykvist. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Though he made allusions to his own life in all of his films, Fanny and Alexander was the first overtly autobiographical film by Ingmar Bergman. Taking his time throughout (188 minutes to be exact), Bergman recreates several episodes from his youth, using as conduits the fictional Ekdahl family. Alexander, the director's alter ego, is first seen at age 10 at a joyous and informal Christmas gathering of relatives and servants. Fanny is Alexander's sister; both suffer an emotional shakedown when their recently-widowed mother (Ewa Froling) marries a cold and distant minister. Stripped of their creature comforts and relaxed family atmosphere, Fanny and Alexander suddenly find their childhood unendurable. The kids' grandmother (Gunn Wallgren) "kidnaps" Fanny and Alexander for the purpose of showering them with the first kindness and affection that they've had since their father's death. This "purge" of the darker elements of Fanny and Alexander's existence is accomplished at the unintentional (but applaudable) cost of the hated stepfather's life. Ingmar Bergman insisted that Fanny and Alexander, originally a multipart television series pared down to feature-film length, represented his final theatrical film, though within a year after its release he was busy with several additional Swedish TV projects, and his final work, the 2003 Saraband (also produced for Swedish television), eventually received global theatrical distribution. Oscars went to Fanny and Alexander for Best Foreign Film, Best Cinematography (Sven Nykvist), Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction/Set Decoration. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In 1982, Ingmar Bergman emerged with one of his most singularly acclaimed films - a work that dramatically broke away from much of the moody psychodrama that characterized such earlier motion pictures as Cries & Whispers and Hour of the Wolf. Entitled Fanny and Alexander, and originally intended as the director's "swan song," this epic plunges into the life of a theatrical family named the Ekdahls, in turn-of-the-century Sweden. Bergman filters life through the eyes of the two titular Ekdahl children (Pernilla Alwin and Bertil Guve), as they come of age, lose their father unexpectedly, and must contend with their mother's remarriage to an uncaring, dictatorial clergyman from whom there seems to be no escape. Instantly hailed as a masterpiece, Fanny won a slew of international awards, including four Oscars. Yet curiously, the three-hour theatrical version seen in the U.S. did not represent the full depth and breadth of Bergman's vision. He also prepared a five-hour version for Swedish television, one that ran locally as a miniseries in 1984, in four separate installments. The extended running time gives the director to further develop and flesh out his characters, substories and themes, and will thus strike many fans of the original film as a remarkable discovery. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

When a political situation in his native Argentina makes it unhealthy for him to continue to live there, Sergio goes to Sweden as a political refugee. Despite the fact that he finds the city cold and inhospitable by his standards, he is a warm and engaging fellow, and manages to charm and cheer up almost everyone whom he meets. Among those who succumb to his easygoing Latin manner are three women: his elderly landlady Karin, her hard-working friend Anita, and Anita's daughter Katja. Although none of them has a real claim on his affections, each one is jealous of the time he spends with the others. An aspiring actor, the only work he can find is as a waiter, but even here his genuine and outgoing good cheer proves of benefit. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Stefan (Bjorern Andressen) is in his last year of school before going to college. He still can't quite make sense out of the shenanigans of adults and shares this confusion with his friends. Stefan makes an agreement with his girlfriend to run away to someplace where people are living more authentic lives. They save their money for tickets to Rome, but when she is prevented by her parents from showing up, he is left standing on the platform. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Harri (Lasse Hjelt) is one of Sweden's many Finnish immigrant-workers. While in Sweden, the illiterate Harri marries and has a child. After accidentally killing a man in a fight, he flees back across the border to Finland and begins to pick up the pieces of his life, but soon, the police come looking for him. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

This Finnish documentary explores the life and work of the Swedish director Ingmar Bergman, whose films, including Wild Strawberries and The Seventh Seal are recognized worldwide as artistic masterpieces. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

This romantic comedy finds a married couple whose sex life is not what it used to be. When the woman sees her husband referee a hockey game, she is stirred by his authoritarian demeanor. She sees him meeting with and kissing a strange woman which only adds to her renewed affections. She has an affair with her gynecologist who puts her in touch with her own heightened sexuality. The husband takes comfort in the arms of his mistress, using the guise of work to leave home. The married couple reunite with a new commitment and a revival of their sexual appreciation for each other. The title refers to the year the film was made. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi